Our two heroes, Brayden and Trace, split up and continued their journeys separately.
After reuniting with Primeape, Brayden enrolled at the Fighting Dojo to train for his upcoming rematch with Sabrina, the Saffron City Gym Leader. While there, he challenged Unova region Trainer Zachary to a battle!
The battle between Primeape and Timburr was fierce, so much so that Timburr evolved into Gurdurr and Primeape finally mastered Outrage! At the end of the fray, both Pokémon were left unable to continue, and the match was declared a tie. Despite this, Brayden decided the time was right for him to challenge Sabrina!
When we last saw Trace, he and Pikachu were helping Cubone master Thunder Punch, only to suddenly be recruited by Misty to rescue Bill from the ruthless bounty hunter, Gideon! Though Gideon managed to get away, Trace was able to learn the truth behind Pikachu's hatred of the wicked scientist through the psychic power of Bill's Abra.
Later that same day…
As Trace reached the Nugget Bridge, Cubone tugged on his pant leg.
"Hmmm? What's up, Cubone?"
"Cubone, bone bone, Cu?" the Lonely Pokémon asked, pointing at Pikachu.
"Huh? Something about Pikachu you're wondering about?" Trace asked. "Maybe…you're wondering how Pikachu is able to absorb electricity and power up?"
Cubone nodded.
"That's because Pikachu's Ability is Lightning Rod. Much like how real metal lightning rods draw in lightning strikes to prevent damage to a building, Pikachu can naturally draw in electricity to prevent it from hitting someone or something," Trace explained. "And as a bonus, Pikachu's electric attacks get much stronger!"
"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu said proudly.
Cubone looked at the bone he always held and tilted his head in curiosity. He wondered if he could do that too, and Trace caught on to this.
"Heh, sorry, Cubone. Your Ability is Rock Head, not Lightning Rod, so you can't absorb electricity the way Pikachu does," Trace explained. "Of course, since you're a Ground-type, you're pretty much immune to electric attacks anyway. I hear some Cubone and Marowak do have that Ability, though. I wonder if they use their bone clubs to draw in the electricity?"
Cubone pondered Trace's question, and while doing so he remembered that he still needed to master Thunder Punch. Then, the little Ground-type got an idea.
"Cu… Cubone! Bone bone!" he said to Pikachu.
"Pi?"
"Cubone! Bone!" Cubone said eagerly, pointing at his bone club.
"Wait… you want Pikachu to use Thunderbolt on your bone?" Trace asked, utterly confused. "What good will that do?"
Cubone responded by throwing a punch. Tiny electric sparks shot out of his fist.
"Oh! I think I get it. Even if you can't get a boost in power, we can still use your bone like a lightning rod!" Trace realized. "You want to feel the electricity in your hand to give you an idea of how Thunder Punch works!"
"Pika!" Pikachu said excitedly.
Cubone nodded and held out his bone club to give Pikachu an easier shot.
"Alright, Pikachu! Aim at Cubone's bone and use Thunderbolt!" Trace exclaimed.
"Pika…CHUUUUU!"
Pikachu squeezed his cheeks and unleashed a bolt of lightning. The electricity struck the bone club and surged within it. Though Cubone's Ground-typing prevented him from being hurt, he could still feel the current running through his weapon and into his hand. The Lonely Pokémon suddenly flashed back to when his mother, Marowak, was alive. He had asked her about how she was able to use Thunder Punch…
"I call forth the electric energy sleeping within me. It surges forth, manifesting within my bone club. I concentrate on the electric power flowing through it, and then, I throw my punch!"
As Cubone's thoughts returned to the present, he knew what he had to do next. He awaited Trace's command.
"Cubone, use Thunder Punch!"
Cubone, still concentrating on the electric power, thrust his fist forward, and electricity shot out of it, just like it always had for his mother!
"YES! It worked! It really worked! We did it, Cubone! You've mastered Thunder Punch!" Trace cheered.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu enthusiastically added.
"Cu!" Cubone shouted happily as he ran back to Trace and hugged him.
"Alright, guys, I think we're ready now. Let's go challenge Misty and win that badge!" Trace said, brimming with newfound confidence.
A few days later, on Route 3…
"Wow, we got through Mt. Moon much faster than I expected! Must not be as big on the inside as Rock Tunnel, I guess," Trace said. "We didn't even run into that many Zubat. Weird."
He reached into his backpack and took out his badge case. Opening it, he once again laid eyes on the Cascade Badge he had won recently, and smiled.
"Four badges now! I've finally caught up to Brayden! And it's all thanks to you, Cubone. Your Thunder Punch finished off Starmie after Pikachu got knocked out!"
("Yeah, Cubone! As frustrating as it is that I lost, I'm glad you were there to finish the job!") Pikachu said to Cubone.
("You did great, buddy! I can't wait to see how much stronger you'll become in the future!") Charmeleon chimed in gleefully.
Cubone was too embarrassed by the compliments to reply, but he smiled at his friends.
"Pretty soon we'll reach Pewter City, where we'll challenge Brock for our next badge!" Trace shouted excitedly.
And we'll also try to get information on Gideon if we can, for Pikachu's sake…
Not far from where Trace and his Pokémon friends were walking, a certain Trainer was training his Pokémon with a familiar martial artist.
"Magmar, Mega Punch!"
"Hitmonchan, use Mega Punch too!"
Both Pokémon slammed their fists into each other with incredible force. Rather than be knocked back, however, they stood their ground and continued to push on.
"Hitmonchan and Magmar appear to be evenly matched!" a man wearing a martial arts uniform remarked.
The other Trainer smirked.
"As if! I was just luring you into range. Magmar, Fire Blast!"
The strange bipedal duck-like Pokémon opened his mouth, and an intense blast of fire shot out of it before Hitmonchan could even react.
*FWOOSH!*
A column of smoke shot into the sky, startling Trace and his Pokémon.
"What was THAT?!" Trace shouted. "Come on, guys! We better check it out!"
Trace made his way through a few trees and up a hill, until he spotted someone he recognized.
"Wait… is that…?"
Running closer to the person, he knew he was right.
"Jackie! My old master!"
"Pika!"
Jackie heard Trace and Pikachu's voices and looked over.
"Oh! My favorite pupils! I had hoped we would meet again under better circumstances…" Jackie said regretfully.
"Hitmonchan…" Hitmonchan groaned.
"What happened? Did you lose a battle?"
"We did… to my latest student, in fact…"
Trace looked around, and he saw another person he recognized. But unlike Jackie, seeing him did not lift Trace's spirits. It was a boy with spiky brown hair.
"BLUE?!" Trace shouted in disbelief.
Surprisingly, Blue wasn't flashing that trademark sneer of his. In fact, he looked quite displeased for some reason. He walked over to Jackie, ignoring Trace completely.
"Seriously? That's the best you could do?!" Blue yelled scornfully. "And here I was all excited to finally battle another decently strong opponent for the first time in like a year. I expected better from the Fighting Dojo's 'Punch Master'."
Blue's words stung Jackie like a Beedrill's Twineedle attack. He fell to his knees, full of shame.
Pikachu growled, but before he could shout at Blue, Trace spoke first, surprising the electric mouse.
"Hey! Why do you always have to talk down to people just because you beat them?! Brayden was right, you ARE a jerk!"
Blue turned to face Trace, looking unamused.
"You should watch your mouth, kid. Who are you, anyway?"
Trace and Pikachu simultaneously fell over from exasperation.
"What? I'm Trace! We met at the Power Plant a while back, remember?"
"Hmmmmmm… the kid who was tagging along with that loser, Brayden? I don't see him here. I bet he ditched you because of how annoying and wimpy you are!"
Trace's face went red, from embarrassment and anger.
"HE DID NOT! I chose to leave him for personal reasons. We promised to meet up again later!"
Blue chuckled.
"Heh. In other words, you left because you were slowing him down."
Trace growled furiously, but sighed. He didn't want to admit it, but Blue wasn't too far off the mark.
"That's enough!" Jackie said, getting to his feet. "Mock me all you wish for not meeting your expectations, but don't say a word against Trace! He has done nothing to you!"
"Pika Pika!"
"Hitmon, Chan!"
Blue rolled his eyes.
"Oh, please. You guys sound just like my Gramps. Call me a jerk all you want. I'm still a better Trainer than either of you!"
Blue turned and started walking away, but Trace spoke up again.
"Are you sure about that?"
Blue stopped. He turned around and glared at Trace.
"Wanna run that by me again?" the arrogant Trainer vehemently said.
Admittedly, Trace knew he shouldn't have said that. But he also knew that Brayden wouldn't back down, and felt that he shouldn't either. He looked over at Pikachu and Charmeleon, and the two Pokémon nodded. They were prepared to battle.
"Is it fair to say you're better than me if you haven't even battled me yet?" Trace inquired.
Blue said nothing, opting to continue glaring at the younger boy.
"You assume my Pokémon and I are weak just because we're friends of Brayden, someone you beat before. Maybe we should prove you wrong!"
"Ha! I didn't think you'd have the guts to challenge me, kid," Blue said. "How many Badges have ya got?"
"Four," Trace said, without batting an eye.
"Hm. Not too bad. Alright, I'll battle you, but only to prove you're out of your league."
He ran a few yards away, faced Trace once more, then readied a Poké Ball.
"Here's what we're going to do," Blue said as he repeatedly tossed the ball up and catching it without looking. "I'm giving you up to three one-on-one fights with my Pokémon. If you can beat just one of them, I'll admit you're an okay Trainer. That good enough for you?"
Trace nodded.
Blue threw the Poké Ball, and from it a large, bipedal, ursine Pokémon emerged. It had a ring-like marking on its belly.
"URSARING!" it bellowed ferociously.
"Yikes! An Ursaring?!" Trace yelped.
"Awww, what's wrong?" Blue asked sarcastically. "Ya scared of my Ursaring?"
"What?! No!" Trace insisted.
"You should be. I caught him at the foot of Mount Silver, so he's extra vicious! Which of your Pokémon do you think can take this guy on?!"
A good question, Trace thought. As he pondered which member of his team he should use, Cubone tugged on his pant leg.
"What? You want to fight Ursaring, Cubone?"
"Cu!" Cubone eagerly replied.
Trace was impressed by Cubone's show of courage. Not long ago, the Lonely Pokémon cowered at the mere sight of an imposing Pokémon.
"Alright, if you're up to it, I'll support you," Trace said with a caring smile.
"Trace, wait," Jackie warned. "Blue is a Champion-level Trainer. I respect your desire to prove yourself. I appreciate that you wish to defend my honor, but you can't defeat him as you are now."
"I know, Master," Trace admitted. "But this is something we have to do. Every battle makes us stronger, and we have to get stronger to find Pikachu's parents!"
"Pikachu's parents?" Jackie asked.
"I'll… tell you about it later," Trace said sheepishly.
Cubone stared at Ursaring, trying his best to look tough. The giant bear Pokémon scowled at him and growled menacingly, causing Cubone to flail his arms in a panic.
Recognizing Cubone's faltering courage, Pikachu and Charmeleon stepped forward.
("Don't be scared, Cubone. You've grown a lot stronger since you joined us! If you do your best, you'll have a chance to win!") Charmeleon encouraged.
("If you don't think you're ready, that's okay. I'll gladly fight that big brute in your place!") Pikachu offered.
Hearing these kind words, Cubone calmed down.
("No, that's fine. I'll fight! I won't get stronger if I don't stand up for myself,") he told Pikachu and Charmeleon.
("Well, if you're sure, then go for it!") Pikachu replied.
("That's the spirit, Cubone!") Charmeleon said.
"All right, enough chit-chat!" Blue exclaimed impatiently. "Let's get this over with!"
"We're ready!" Trace replied.
Pikachu and Charmeleon stepped back a few feet, and Cubone steeled himself for the battle.
After a few moments of silence, Blue tapped his foot impatiently.
"Well? I'm waiting. Give your first command already!"
But Trace knew that rushing in recklessly against a much stronger opponent was a strategy doomed to fail.
When Brayden and I tried that against Loki's Machamp, it nearly cost us everything. Gotta fight cautiously.
"No thanks," Trace responded. "You go first!"
"Heh heh! Alright, if you insist!" Blue snickered. "Ursaring, Slash!"
Ursaring's already long and sharp claws grew even more so and glowed white, then the ursine made a dash for Cubone. As Ursaring reached Cubone, Trace reacted.
"Cubone, Headbutt!"
Before Ursaring could lash Cubone with his claws, Cubone leaped through the air and struck the Hibernator Pokémon headfirst right in the face, then grabbed on.
"Urrrring?!" Ursaring growled in frustration.
"Pry that pest off, Ursaring!" Blue yelled irritably.
Ursaring clutched Cubone in his claws and pulled, but Cubone held tightly to the large bear Pokémon's face, refusing to let go.
"Use Thunder Punch!" Trace urged.
Still clinging on for dear life, Cubone pulled back his fist, gathered electricity inside it, then slugged Ursaring in the forehead. But the blow did not faze Ursaring in the slightest.
"You can't compete with an Ursaring's strength!" Blue said. "Ursaring, Superpower!"
Ursaring's body became surrounded in a light-blue glow, and the muscles in his arms swelled up. In an instant, Ursaring tore Cubone off his face (ripping off a bit of his fur in the process) and, furiously, threw the little Ground-type into the ground with such force that a small crater was formed around Cubone. Ursaring's muscles then returned to their original size, and he showed small signs of recoil, but immediately shook the feeling off.
"Are you okay, Cubone?!" Trace shouted, full of worry for his friend.
Cubone, though weary, slowly got to his feet, putting on a brave face. Noticing this, Blue scoffed.
"You must think you're so brave, don't you? We'll see about that! Ursaring, Scary Face!"
Ursaring once again glared menacingly down at Cubone, but this time his eyes turned a frightening shade of red, and a frightening illusion that resembled the Hibernator Pokémon's face shot out from them, engulfing Cubone.
The effect was made immediately apparent, as Cubone was immensely frightened. Not only did his speed level drop, but he froze up from sheer terror, trembling nonstop.
"Oh no! Cubone's too scared to fight!" Trace shouted.
("Come on, Cubone! Don't be scared of that bully! Fight!") Pikachu encouraged.
("Hang in there, little buddy!") Charmeleon added.
Cubone heard his friends' cries, but he couldn't overcome his fear of Ursaring.
"Just as I thought. You're a wimp, just like your Trainer!" Blue mocked. "Ursaring, finish this with Hammer Arm!"
"Ursa!" Ursaring roared.
As Ursaring raised his arm into the air, Cubone collapsed, clasped his hands down over his skull helmet and shut his eyes, too afraid to watch.
"STOP!"
Cubone felt himself being lifted off the ground. Opening his eyes, he saw that it was Trace who had done so.
"Alright, Blue. You win this round. Just don't hurt Cubone any further!" Trace begged.
Blue shrugged.
"Alright, if you say so, kid. Come on back, Ursaring."
Ursaring dropped his arm and looked quite frustrated as Blue called him back into his ball. Apparently, he had really wanted to vent his rage on Cubone.
"Choose your next Pokémon, kid!" Blue called out.
"My name is TRACE!" Trace shouted irritably. "And stop calling me 'kid'! You're only a year older than me!"
"Whatever. Just pick already! I haven't got all day."
Trace gently set Cubone back on the ground next to Pikachu and Charmeleon.
("That other boy is right, I am a wimp.") Cubone whimpered.
("Don't let him get you down, pal, you did your best.") Charmeleon replied as he gave Cubone a hug for comfort.
Pikachu, enraged by Blue's intimidation tactics, was growling. He looked into Trace's eyes, telling him without saying a word that he was ready to battle.
"Okay, Pikachu, you're up next!"
"Pika!"
Pikachu leaped in front of Trace and leered at Blue.
"Oh, come ON! A Pikachu?! Another unevolved weakling of a Pokémon?!" Blue protested. "Are you mocking me, or are you just that stupid?"
"PIKA PIKACHU!" Pikachu snapped. He unleashed a Thunderbolt on the ground directly in front of Blue. The electric mouse had missed on purpose— that attack was meant purely to intimidate the arrogant Trainer for insulting him.
"Pikachu's a lot stronger than he looks! Don't judge him just because he's not evolved!" Trace yelled.
"PIKA PIKA!" Pikachu added furiously.
Jackie placed a hand on Trace's shoulder.
"Hey, calm down! Don't let him get to you, okay? Stay focused," the Black Belt said, gently but firmly.
"Right, sorry," Trace said under his breath, embarrassed to have lost his temper.
"Hmph. Fine then. But don't expect me to hold back!" Blue retorted. He threw out his next Poké Ball. It burst open, revealing a huge amphibian Pokémon that had a large flower blossoming on its back. The Pokémon flashed a cocky smirk, identical to his Trainers'.
"Venusaur? Could it be…?"
Trace recalled when Brayden told him about his previous battles with Blue, weeks ago, not long after they first left Lavender Town.
"That smirk… it must be the same Pokémon that beat Brayden and Wartortle before!"
"That's right! Venusaur is my star player. You ain't got a ghost of a chance of beating him!" Blue said proudly.
"We'll see about that!" Trace responded. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"
"Pika CHUUUUU!"
Trace's battle with Blue is growing more intense with every passing moment! Will he be able to defeat one of the former Champion's seemingly unstoppable Pokémon?! The battle concludes in Chapter 40!
Trace's Current Team:
Charmeleon (Male)
Moves: Flamethrower, Metal Claw, Brick Break, Swords Dance
Ability: Blaze
Bashful Nature. Quick to Flee.
Eats Anything.
Pikachu (Male)
Moves: Thunderbolt, Mega Punch, Agility, Volt Tackle
Ability: Lightning Rod
Brave Nature. Likes to Fight.
Likes Spicy Food, Hates Sweet Food
Poliwhirl (Male)
Moves: Surf, Double Slap, Mud Shot, Substitute
Ability: Damp
Gentle Nature. Naps Often.
Likes Bitter Food, Hates Sour Food
Arbok (Male)
Moves: Sludge Bomb, Ice Fang, Dig, Glare
Ability: Shed Skin
Lonely Nature. Scatters Things Often.
Likes Sweet Food, Hates Spicy Food
Cubone (Male)
Moves: Bone Club, Growl, Headbutt, Thunder Punch
Ability: Rock Head
Timid Nature. Often Lost in Thought.
Likes Spicy Food, Hates Sour Food
(Yes, you read that right, Arbok and Cubone's Natures have swapped. I realized that I wrote them the opposite way, with Arbok being the lonely one and Cubone being the timid one, so I finally corrected the mistake.)
