Chapter 15

Hunting

"Finally, you're here. I was about to leave without you." The woman drawled, turning to face Patrick as he approached in the predawn glow.

Pack filled to bursting and strapped tightly to his back, Patrick marched quickly down the worn dirt path to meet up with his reluctant travel companion in front of the tiny Pokécenter. Meowth followed her trainer down the path at a more leisurely pace, yawning and stretching with every other step. Not enthused by the early morning activity.

"Sorry, I thought I was early," Patrick remarked, glancing down at his watch to confirm it was only 5:45 am. "I take it you are ready to go."

"Yup, let's head out! I need to get to saffron and back ASAP." The trainer replied, grabbing her pack from the ground, and throwing it over her shoulder, a dark wood, recurved bow was strapped to the outside of her pack. As she walked toward the path leading into the mountains, with Patrick jogging to catch up, she deftly grabbed two Pokéball from her waist and tossed them into the air. Releasing her team in a flash of light.

Patrick watched with interest as two humanoid shapes formed in the white light and landed on the ground next to their trainer. The first was slender and short of stature, barely five feet tall. Dressed in lavender combat gear and sporting padded boxing gloves. Hitmonchan lightly bounced on the balls of his feet as he quickly scanned his surroundings.

The stocky yellow humanoid next to the fighting-type slowly gazed around as well. Sleepy eyes lazily looked over at Patrick and Meowth before lumbering over to his trainer, scratching his short thick mane of white fur.

With her Hitmonchan and Hypno released, she quickly sped down the road at a pace Patrick hardly thought sustainable for the weeklong trek through the mountains. Nevertheless, Patrick matched her stride without complaint and Meowth loped along with the pair for several minutes, before growing bored and veering off into the tall grass, disappearing almost immediately.

"Where is your Meowth going?" The trainer asked, noting the cat's exit.

"She usually gets restless just walking next to me when we travel. She's probably off to catch some breakfast and then will wander a perimeter around us for the next few hours." Patrick replied, looking in the direction Meowth had gone but unable to see even a flash of tan fur or a ripple of grass to mark the stealthy cat's progress.

"If I weren't here, it would look like you were walking by yourself." His travel companion commented. "Any hunting Pokémon would think you were an easy target."

"If I were by myself, I would have released Nidorino to protect me. But he doesn't play nice with other Pokémon right now so I'll rely on Hitmonchan and Hypno." Patrick admitted, "Plus, I'm not totally defenseless." Pulling up his sleeve to show off Bug, who was already clamped around his left wrist and sparking slightly from all the power her had drained from the Pokécenter's electrical outlet the night before.

"I hope that small fry is stronger than he looks." She replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Bug can pack a punch, don't worry about him," Patrick replied confidently. "I uh… didn't catch your name by the way. I'm Patrick."

"Tasha." The redhead replied without looking at Patrick, instead scanning the still grass that surrounded them.

They were currently walking between two large, sloping hills. The foothills to the massive ridge of stone cliffs and rocky mountains that made up the southeastern edge of the Moon Mountain Range. Tall grass grew on either side of the trail they followed, well worn from trainers, Pokémon, and the wheels of countless trade caravans that braved the mountainous pass each year.

Far to the right, a small stream trickled in an otherwise dry riverbed. Fed by the rains and snowmelt, the stream could grow to a rushing torrent of water during the rainy season or early summer when the snow of the mountain tops began to disappear. Now, however, it was only large enough to allow local Pokémon to drink from. Too small to support any aquatic or semi-aquatic Pokémon.

Patrick saw Meowth some ways away lapping at a still pool of water for a few minutes. The cat finished drinking and shook off a few water droplets on her nose before quickly disappearing into the landscape of round boulders, tall grass, and gnarled trees that grew in the valley.

Patrick had initially been concerned about the strong Pokémon that lived in the mountains but trusted the Meowth was stealthy enough to avoid detection by most Pokémon and alert enough not to fall victim to an ambush. As she had done in Viridian Forest, if she did come across a threat, she was instructed to quickly return to the party.

0000

"What did you mean your Nidorino doesn't play nice?" Tasha asked after a few hours of silent trekking.

Around them, the mountains had risen dramatically. Bare stone cliff faces, dotted with towering waterfalls and stubborn trees jutting from the vertical wall surrounded them as they hiked from valley to valley, zigzagging around the more massive mountains and deep gorges. The worn path never narrowed nor widened, staying roughly the width of a wagon, it drifted from stone plateau to stone plateau.

The overground route had been founded only a few years ago and although it was much less direct than going under the mountains, through the labyrinth of caves, tunnels, caverns, and underground rivers, it was safer for merchants to transport their wares and had quickly become the preferred route. Knowing you were unlikely to wake up to a Zubat draining your blood in total darkness was another reason many preferred the above-ground road.

To maintain some form of safety, both the Pewter and Cerulean gyms regularly sent out teams of trainers to drive off any Pokémon that were disturbed by the human presence passing through their domain. However, the road was long and treacherous, and no group of trainers, no matter how large, could guard its entire length.

"Oh, well…" Patrick chuckled sheepishly. "Ever since Nidorino evolved, he has been pretty aggressive and challenges every Pokémon he meets to a fight, whether they want to fight or not. I'm working on training him to have more self-control, but right now he is driven mostly by instinct."

"Are you worried you might hurt my Pokémon?" Tasha laughed with some amusement. "Don't worry, we've fought plenty of Pokémon bigger and badder than just a Nidorino. If we are going to be working as a team, I'd like to see your Nidorino. If he does want to pick a fight, Hypno can take him without hurting him." Nodding her head to the yellow Pokémon that was plodding along behind the ground. Noticing that the group was watching him, the sleepy psychic flashed a thumbs up.

Hitmonchan also listened to the conversation with some interest from his position at the front of the party. Ever the Fighting-type, Hitmonchan was always eager to meet, and fight, powerful Pokémon. He didn't hold too much confidence that their new travel companion would fall into that category, since Patrick only had one badge, but he was cautiously optimistic.

"Um… Let's find somewhere with some more open ground along the path to do introductions then. If Nidorino does act up, it'll be better to have room to maneuver." Patrick cautioned; his palms were already slightly sweaty at the thought of releasing Nidorino with two powerful Pokémon already present.

"Sure. Whatever makes you happy." Tasha waved off, thinking Patrick was being overly cautious but willing to humor him.

After an hour more of hiking, where Patrick nervously rehearsed exactly how he would release Nidorino to not agitate him and how he would apologize to Tasha if one of her Pokémon got poisoned, they found an appropriate spot for their meeting.

At the junction of three separate valleys, there was a natural grassy clearing, where no trees grew and only a single boulder sat. With plenty of room to dodge attacks, Patrick reasoned he should be able to calm Nidorino before things could get too far out of hand.

Tasha amused herself watching her inexperienced travel companion stress about the coming encounter, supremely confident that her Pokémon who had earned four badges alongside her would prevail.

With the meeting place decided, Tasha strolled over to the large boulder and leaned against its shady side, keen to cool off in the shade. Her two Pokémon took positions in front of her, acting as guards should Nidorino prove to be as volatile as his trainer seemed to think. Hitmonchan bounced lightly on his feet and rolled out his shoulders, eager to see Nidorino while Hypno gazed ahead with complete apathy.

"Ready?" Patrick called, fidgeting with Nidorino's Pokéball in his hand. At his feet, Meowth looked on curiously, interested to see how her teammate would react. Bug was resting on Patrick's shoulder, also curious.

"Ready!" Tasha chuckled. "Hypno, be ready with a barrier just in case." She added quietly.

With a deep breath, Patrick threw the red-and-white orb into the air and with a burst of light, Nidorino materialized.

Landing in front of his trainer, Nidorino shook out his muscular shoulders and roared, pleased to be released from his Pokéball. Not noticing the trainer and Pokémon behind him, he calmly walked over to Patrick and thumped into his side, rubbing his purple flank against Patrick's hip in greeting.

"Good boy," Patrick muttered, roughly scratching behind his Pokémon's large, pointed ears. Happy that his Pokémon had exited his Pokémon calmy and had not immediately looked for a fight. Although small, progress was progress.

"He doesn't seem too aggressive," Tasha called from across the clearing.

Patrick felt Nidorino's neck muscles bunch with tension as he jerked around to face the noise, almost knocking Patrick to the ground as he did. Narrowing his eyes at not one, but two potential enemies, Nidorino kneaded the soil beneath his feet and began breathing more quickly.

"Nidorino, calm!" Patrick commanded sternly, trying to stand in front of Nidorino before he could make a move toward the other Pokémon.

Not acknowledging Patrick's command, Nidorino roughly pushed past his trainer. Easily overpowering Patrick as he focused solely on the two Pokémon standing on the other side of the clearing. Inside his chest, his heart thundered, and adrenaline dumped into his veins as his lust for battle slowly overwhelmed any thought of restraint.

Sensing the challenge and eager to fight himself, Hitmonchan jumped forward fists raised.

With an opponent presenting himself, Nidorino roared and broke into a charge. Trampling grassy tufts beneath his feet, Nidorino's claws easily dug into the soft earth and propelled himself to greater speeds, racing across the grass at the on-guard fighting-type.

Lowering his wicked horn, Nidorino prepared to gore Hitmonchan and end the fight with one savage blow. Hitmonchan likewise prepared to dodge and counter the straightforward attack, also intending to finish the foolish younger Pokémon with a single strike.

Before the two Pokémon could engage, however, a shimmering purple barrier blinked into existence between the two and Nidorino ran straight into it with a resounding boom. Barrier holding strong, Nidorino bounced harmlessly against the psychic shield and rolled once before quickly springing back to his feet and shaking himself off.

Hitmonchan lowered his gloves at the sight of the barrier and glared at his Psychic companion. Hypno merely shrugged at the outrage.

"Okay, I see what you mean." Tasha conceded, walking forward with Hypno to stand just on the other side of the barrier, examining the poison-type who was angrily pawing at the barrier and prodding it with his horn.

"Nidorino, these are our travel companions for the next week," Patrick explained tentatively stroking his Pokémon's side, as Nidorino slowly looked at each Pokémon in turn. Stopping to gaze at Hitmonchan the longest, who matched his fiery glare with one of his own. "We put the barrier between you two because we didn't want you to hurt each other."

At the suggestion that Nidorino could harm him, Hitmonchan scoffed and muttered quietly to himself.

And just like that, the dam that had held Nidorino's rage in check broke.

With a roar, Nidorino threw himself back at the barrier separating him from Hitmonchan, viciously striking it with a direct horn attack. Again, the barrier held strong and Nidorino was thrown back. As soon as his feet touched the ground, however, Nidorino rushed the barrier, striking it over and over, hollow booms marking each attack.

Tasha's amusement slowly turned to concern, and she watched the wild Pokémon rush the barrier, again and again, trying to get at Hitmonchan. Next to her Hypno grunted slightly with each of Nidorino's strikes and Tasha took a few more steps away. Just in case.

On the other side of the barrier, Patrick's cries of protest fell on deaf ears as Nidorino fell into a berserker rage. With a roar of frustration, Nidorino shot a spray of poison stings at the unrelenting barrier and then watched with a start as the tiny missiles easily passed through the psychic field and faded into the distance.

Strategy quickly forming, Nidorino unleashed volley after volley of poisoned missiles at the troublesome psychic-type that was interfering with his fight against Hitmonchan. Surprised at the sudden assault, Hypno was forced to dive to the side to avoid the attack.

That small interruption was all Nidorino needed and as soon as Hypo's concentration was broken, Nidorino lunged at the barrier, his sharp horn finally shattering the purple force field.

Caught flat-footed and unprepared, Hitmonchan was knocked to the ground and barely avoided being skewered by Nidorino's sharp horn as the purple beast rushed past.

As Nidorino skidded to a stop and turned to rush Hitmonchan with another horn attack, the fighting-type sprang back to his feet and dropped into a defensive stance, the fires of battle burning brightly in his eyes as well.

Letting Nidorino rush at him again, Hitmonchan deftly back handed the horn to the side and struck with a solid cross to Nidorino's jaw, the impact throwing Nidorino back across the grass. Rolling to a stop, Nidorino dug his short claws into the earth and threw himself back into the fight with another roar.

Leading with a horn attack again, Nidorino tilted his head, dodging the expected block, and pivoted his whole body to unleash a devastating double kick at Hitmonchan.

Seeing Nidorino's legs rushing towards him, Hitmonchan arched his back dodging the kicks by mere inches as they sailed past his face. Having avoided the attack but off-balanced, Hitmonchan backflipped away, lightly landing on his feet, and lunged back at Nidorino, ready to reengage as the Poison-type rushed him as well.

Dodging kicks, horn attacks, and poison stings, Hitmonchan expertly kept his raging opponent at bay, all the while retaliating with short, sharp strikes that sent Nidorino tumbling back. Although Nidorino was a novice to battle, compared to Hitmonchan, the fighting-type was enjoying the relentless assault as no matter how hard he hit the poison-type, Nidorino would always bounce back and keep on pursuing him across the clearing.

A red fog had descended over Nidorino's mind at this point and any thoughts or feelings beyond the battle at hand faded away. Nidorino was completely focused on the fight, coming up with strategies, feints, combos, and diversions at a lightning pace that he could employ against his agile opponent. As the fight raged, his attacks slowly lost some of their reckless fury as each overreach or off-balance was quickly exploited with a strike from Hitmonchan. Instead, strikes became more measured and the expected counters were more regularly being blocked or avoided.

As the pair exchanged blow after blow, with neither interested in backing down or stopping, Patrick slowly sidled over to Tasha who was watching with excitement behind another barrier Hypno had created.

"Sorry about Nidorino, I'm working on his self-control, but it is taking time." Patrick apologized as he joined the other trainer.

"Don't apologize, this is great! Your Nidorino is relentless! I can tell Hitmonchan is really enjoying himself as well. He hasn't had a good fight in so long..." Tasha praised, not taking her eyes off the pair of Pokémon. "Nidorino is adapting to Hitmonchan's fighting style too."

Nidorino had finally caught Hitmonchan after a series of thrusts, kicks, and feints that left the fighting-type briefly off-balanced. Throwing his whole body at this opponent, Nidorino tackled his slender opponent to the ground, utilizing his superior weight and the dozens of spines lining his back to draw several pricks of blood along Hitmonchan's side.

Desperate to get out of his vulnerable position on his back, Hitmonchan kicked his knees up to his chest, planted his feet squarely on Nidorino's belly, and with a grunt pushed with his deceptively strong legs, throwing the larger Pokémon high into the air.

Rightening himself in the air, Nidorino landed on all fours and charged back at the Hitmonchan who had also regained his footing, eager to reengage his opponent. Far to the side, Patrick wasn't sure if he saw a smile flicker across his Pokémon's face or if it was just a trick of the light.

"Oh! Looks like Nidorino got a good hit in, Hitmonchan has been poisoned." Tasha noticed, seeing an ugly purple bruise growing around several of the puncture wounds on her Pokémon's side. "Let's finish this off, Hitmonchan! Lead him over here!"

With a sigh, Hitmonchan nodded. Darting around Nidorino, Hitmonchan continued to duck and weave around his attacks, although now he was slowly leading Nidorino back towards the awaiting trainers and Hypno.

Nidorino squinted his eyes with suspicion, not sure what his opponent was aiming at as he was led across the battlefield. However, he was unwilling to disengage from the fight and didn't possess any viable long-range attacks, so Nidorino pursued his retreating opponent regardless.

Finally seeing his opponent plant his feet directly in front of the trio of spectators Nidorino led with a measured charge. Intending to feint at the last second as Hitmonchan invariable dodged and to unleash a double kick wherever the fighting-type ended up. However, as Nidorino closed in, Hitmonchan's eyes glowed a dark red and he adopted a fighting stance he hadn't used before in the fight.

As Nidorino leaped forward with his horn, time seemed to slow and Hitmonchan exploded into motion. In a blur of impossible speed, Hitmonchan side-stepped the airborne poison-type, gripped the length of the horn, and forcefully pulled Nidorino to the ground before pinning him on his side.

Before Nidorino could even think to resist, a silver coin swung into his vision. Back and forth the coin swung and, try as Nidorino might, he was unable to tear his eyes away from the enchanting coin. As he watched the coin sway and catch the light, Nidorino's eyelids grew heavy, and all thoughts of battle left him. Feeling peaceful, Nidorino ceased struggling and lay on the soft grass, falling fast asleep.

"Well done, you two! An excellent takedown as usual." Tasha cheered, ruffling Hypno's mane and fist-bumping Hitmonchan.

"Good fight, buddy," Patrick whispered as he recalled his slumbering Pokémon to his Pokéball.

"You got an antidote for me?" Tasha called over to Patrick as she examined the pinpricks over Hitmonchan's ribs and the purple bruising that covered them.

"Yeah, right here!" Patrick said, tossing Tasha the vial of antidote he had been carrying since the start of the fight. Deftly snatching the vile from the air, Tasha flicked off the cap and generously sprayed the affected area. Hitmonchan sighed with relief as the antidote immediately began to work and the burning in his side ceased.

After inspecting the rest of Hitmonchan's body to make sure he hadn't been poisoned anywhere else, Tasha tossed the vial back at Patrick, who slipped it back into his pack.

"You've got quite a fighter." Tasha praised, walking over to Patrick, Bug, and Meowth.

"Yeah, that's what I'm learning. Nidorino only evolved a few weeks ago, so I'm still trying to figure out how best to handle him." Patrick replied, looking down at the Pokéball in his hand, and sighed.

Not for the first time, he thought back to the little purple rodent he had met in Pallet and traveled through Viridian Forest with. Although Nidorino was the same Pokémon, he had changed so much both physically and mentally that Patrick found himself missing the loyal, feisty pre-evolution.

"It will just take some time. Pokémon need to have some time to get used to their new body and powers." Tasha reassured, "His old personality will start shining through in no time."

"Thanks, I hope so." Patrick sighed, "I've researched and studied Pokémon evolution pretty thoroughly the last few years. But it's so different reading about Pokémon having a temperament change and seeing it happen to a friend…"

"Hi Spearow, welcome back," Tasha said cheerfully after a moment, causing Patrick to look up in confusion at the abrupt change in tone and subject.

No longer looking at Patrick, Tasha was now busy scratching and nuzzling the large red-winged hawk that was perched on her shoulder. Spearow gently gripped Tasha's leather jacket with its short, sharp talons and preened under the attention it received.

"I didn't know you had a Spearow," Patrick remarked, walking closer to get a better look at the bird. Spearow eyed Patrick and Meowth suspiciously but didn't move from its perch.

"Yeah! Because you were so slow this morning, I released her for some exercise before you got to the Pokécenter." Tasha replied.

"I was 15 minutes early…" Patrick muttered to himself. "That will be so useful when Spearow evolves into a Fearow, you'd be able to ride her between cities instead of walking. I've been thinking about catching a flying-type but haven't decided which one..."

With introductions completed and Nidorino sleeping off his latest battle in his Pokéball, the pair of trainers and their entourage of Pokémon resumed their trek east through the mountains. Hitmonchan bounded forward twenty paces to form the point of the party, while Hypno slowed down slightly to be the rearguard.

"Yeah, a flying mount makes life easier but Spearow won't be the one." Tasha chuckled, petting the bird on her shoulder affectionately. Spearow in response turned her beak up indignantly and looked away, ignoring the dig. "She probably won't ever evolve."

"Why do you think that?" Patrick asked, cocking his head to the side as he took a closer look at the bird but noted no obvious deformities. "All Spearow should have the potential to evolve in Fearow, and the evolution threshold is relatively low. You can get a Fearow before your 3rd badge if you start training one early."

"Spearow has the potential to evolve, sure. It's just she doesn't have the fighting spirit to battle and train for it. She prefers to just travel with me, relax and eat bugs." Tasha explained. Spearow had since grown fed up with being the subject of conversation and stretched out her wings and took off again into the sky. Meowth hungrily watched the bird disappear into the clouds.

"Oh, I've read about that! Not all Pokémon have that same drive to battle in life-or-death battles constantly. They are officially called companion Pokémon, right?" Patrick asked, the vague memory of a paragraph in a textbook floating into his mind.

"Yes, Pokémon like Hitmonchan and your Nidorino live for that fight. Others just prefer to live in comfort and can make great pets. If you want to put together a champion-level team, you'll have to make sure to only catch Pokémon that have that drive, otherwise, they'll get burnt out from the grind."

As Tasha explained why that drive was so important when creating a team, Patrick thought back to what Ben and Janice had said in the Pokécenter at Mt. Moon's base camp. How they and their Pokémon had earned a few badges but weren't interested in pushing to greater heights, instead simply maintaining their current strength with odd jobs.

Comparing that mindset to a Pokémon like Nidorino, who ate, slept, and breathed battle. It was obvious that given time, Nidorino's strength would far outshine any Pokémon who didn't have the drive, regardless of type match-up. Nidorino would fight and grow stronger until his dying breath.

Shifting his focus to Meowth walking beside him, Patrick wasn't sure how strong Meowth's fighting spirit was. She loved dominating those weaker than her, often even toying with them in battle only to crush their hope with a series of precise and devasting attacks. She trained hard when Patrick asked but more for the praise and affection she received rather than an intrinsic drive to get stronger. Patrick would have to wait to see whether that drive would be magnified or dampened upon evolution, as Persian as a whole were known to be a very lazy species.

Finally, there was Bug, who had yet to face any strong opponents on his own but had been thrilled when Patrick had devised the finger-guns strategy to allow Bug to participate in larger battles without fear of being crushed. The helpful little insect tried his best in their training sessions and watched his stronger teammates intently whenever they fought, battling vicariously through them. Time would tell if and when Bug evolved.

"Jet at the Pewter gym probably fed you the line about 'pressure creates diamonds or gravel'? That is his way of introducing the concept of killer instincts, how some Pokémon can rise to the challenge of battle, and some fall short." Tasha finished explaining.

"That is great to know. I've never thought of it that way." Patrick said thoughtfully, mind racing through all the textbooks he had studied and research he had conducted back in Sinnoh. Temperament or 'fighting spirit' had never been an area he had thought to focus on before.

Given lots to think about, the pair of trainers fell back into a comfortable silence as they continued to trek across the mountain range towards Cerulean City.

0000

Making good progress for the rest of the day, Patrick and Tasha spent the last hour of sunlight finding an appropriate spot to set up camp for the night. With mountains all around them, they were plunged into shadow by early afternoon and had to set up camp much earlier than they would have liked.

Just off the path, on a relatively flat grassy clearing, they found the charred remnants of a campfire from a previous group that must have stopped in the weeks prior. Not looking to create more work than was needed, the two trainers quickly dropped their packs and got to preparing a fire of their own. As the humans split up to do their jobs, Bug created a web of electrified threads around the campsite under the scrutiny of Hypno, who curiously watched the tiny Pokémon work.

With firewood gathered, Tasha lit the pile with a few hits of flint to steel. Giving the trainers a flickering source of light and heat to eat their meals.

Patrick dug through his pack and selected a dented can of beans for his meal and retrieved a battery for Bug. Meowth had returned to them shortly before dark and judging by her bulging stomach, had already eaten.

Likewise, Tasha had dug out a few cans of her own and split the meal with Hitmonchan. Hypno had wandered into the surrounding forest to consume any berries, roots, bulbs, or nuts that he could find.

Nidorino was still asleep in his Pokéball, and Patrick decided to let him rest.

0000

The next few days passed the same way. Tasha led a grueling pace and Patrick was pleased to find that even though his feet ached by the end of each day, his stamina had improved enough to not slow her down.

The initial battle between Nidorino and Hitmonchan seemed to have loosened up his traveling companion, and Tasha had become quite talkative. Spending most of her trainer career in the wilderness, Tasha was adept at identifying the various trees and vegetation that grew around them. Pointing out the ones that were nutritious to Pokémon and which were poisonous. She had even helped Patrick identify a few species of plants that would help to supplement Nidorino's diet.

She also began teaching Patrick how to read the weather and the terrain, how formations of clouds and the speed at which they were moving could predict rain and coming storms. She did admit that the mountains created bizarre air currents that were nearly impossible to read but in the flat lands and rolling hills of the rest of Kanto, the skills were much more valuable.

They had even discovered their mutual friends of Ed and Rob and had happily traded stories of the two brothers in the brief time they had both known them. Patrick was glad to hear the brothers were doing well, protecting miners up north, and silently hoped they wouldn't get into too much trouble. Tasha was shocked to hear of their run-in with the Pinsir horde in Viridian Forest as neither brother had mentioned it when they explained their route to Pewter. Like Patrick, the Forest was still a traumatic subject for them and not one brought up often.

However, the most surprising part of their journey through the mountainous peaks was Nidorino's fluctuating demeanor. After their initial battle on the first day, Patrick was ready for a raging Nidorino to burst from his Pokéball as soon as called upon. Instead, Nidorino lazily emerged from the Pokéball the next morning, yawned, and stretched. As if savoring the last few minutes of a long nap. Looking over at Tasha and her team, who were safely behind an overlapping reflect and light screen, Nidorino's eyes lingered on Hitmonchan for only a moment before turning and lumbering off into the forest in search of food. Perplexing everyone else around the campfire.

The peace didn't last long however and the very next day Nidorino once again challenged Hitmonchan to a fight, rushing the fighting-type when he wasn't looking. Possessing all the subtly of a freight train, the Hitmonchan easily reacted in time. Parrying the incoming horn and delivering a vicious uppercut to the purple beast.

This quickly dissolved into an all-out brawl where Hitmonchan unleashed an onslaught of punches at Nidorino, who didn't even bother trying to defend. Instead, intent on rushing through the attacks to respond with one of his own. To his credit, Nidorino landed a few good hits of his own. Knocking his lighter opponent around with full-body tackles and a few well-placed double kicks.

This fight, and the handful to follow, was watched on with exasperation by Patrick who was unable to snap Nidorino out of his battle lust, and Tasha who just chuckled at the raging poison-type, confident in Hitmonchan's ability to handle himself. By the end of that day, Patrick had just given Tasha one of his antidotes to hold, rather than having to dig one out for her every time his Pokémon poisoned his companions.

By the fourth morning of their journey, the party was over halfway through the mountains and they broke into their usual routine. Bug short-circuited the web of electrified threads that surrounded their campsite and the Pokémon stretched and started tracing small circles around their perimeter. Making sure nothing had moved or changed while they slept. Tasha and Patrick broke down the tarp they had slept under and packed their sleeping rolls.

As they traveled through the forested valley, one of the dozens they had passed through at this point, the morning sun slowly began to make its way over the mountains. Long shadows, cast by those peaks in front of them, kept their valley in relative twilight until late morning.

Around them, dew clung to leaves and tall blades of grass leftover from the chilly night and although they would quickly evaporate in the sunlight, it wasn't soon enough to prevent Meowth from being completely soaked by the little droplets after a brief prowl through the tall grass. Much to the cat's chagrin.

Nidorino had been given the job of vanguard for their trek, as keeping the beast in front of the party limited his ability to ambush Hitmonchan. Currently, Nidorino was sniffing the hard earth path in front of them intently, zig-zagging back and forth in search of any danger or potential battles. His ears swiveled like radar dishes, keen on any sound in the otherwise quiet valley.

Hitmonchan and Hypno often walked next to the trainers and Meowth and Spearow took turns scouting the area around them for any lurking Pokémon.

A flutter of black and white feathers drew Patrick's attention to a tree further ahead of them on the path. Nidorino with his head down either hadn't yet detected the new Pokémon or simply didn't pay it any mind. After chasing dozens of Pidgey and Spearow, he had learned that challenging flying-types to battle wasn't worth the effort, as he had no means to pursue them if they decided to flee instead of fight.

"Is that… a Starly?" Patrick asked uncertainly, straining his eyes to try and make out the features of the small bird.

"Where?" Tasha asked, scanning the surrounding trees until she spotted it. "Yeah, I think you're right. Good eyes, Poindexter."

Patrick rolled his eyes at the nickname. Tasha had given it to him a few days prior after a particularly spirited rant on the intricacies of water Pokémon evolutions. Despite his protests, it seemed to have stuck and the best he could do was ignore it.

"What is a wild Starly doing in Kanto? Do you think it's a trainers?" Patrick asked, bewildered.

"What are you talking about?" Tasha asked, pausing from rummaging in her pack to stare at him. After a moment, everything clicked into place, and continued looking in her bag as she explained. "Nonnative Pokémon have started to pop up all over the place in Kanto, particularly the eastern parts of the region where the major cities are. You wouldn't have experienced it since you came straight into Pallet but Kanto has a bit of an ecological crisis going on."

"How did it happen? Where are they all coming from?" Patrick asked staring at the black bird that was hopping from branch to branch, resolving to look into more once they reached Cerulean.

"Trainers mass breeding trying to get 'Perfect' Pokémon or shiny variants are the usual culprits. They get the Pokémon they want and then release dozens of the rejects into the wild. Terrible for the environment but lucky for us. Starly is delicious." Tasha said from the side.

"What does that mean?" Patrick turned at the odd statement to find Tasha with her bow fully drawn, carefully aiming at the bird.

Before Patrick could offer a protest, she let the arrow fly. Her aim was true and the arrow struck the bird dead center, the force knocking it out of the tree. Tasha started to jog over to retrieve her arrow and her kill.

"What?" Patrick almost yelled after her. "You can't do that! You just killed it. It was just sitting there." Too distraught over watching a murder to form complex sentences.

"You're in the wilderness now, pal. It's hunt or be hunted out here. And I ran out of meat." Tasha explained, cleaning gore off her arrow and slipping it back into a quiver, and slipping it back into her pack.

"But… it was just sitting there," Patrick repeated, upset at seeing the cute little bird get shot from the tree.

"And now it's dead. Honestly, it's the best way Starly could hope to go. It was a clean shot, with no pain. Better than being ripped to shreds by a Pidgeot, that's for sure." Tasha explained as she quickly went to work field dressing the carcass. Feeling slightly nauseous, Patrick went for a walk further down the path as Taha separated muscle from feather and bone. Leaving Meowth, who sat quietly next to Tasha, wide eyes fixated on the growing pile of poultry.

Patrick gently ushered Nidorino away as well, not wanting the smell of blood to drive him into a frenzy.

As the two walked quietly down the path, Patrick let his eyes roam upwards past the branches, past the mountains, staring at the blue sky high above. Logically he knew Tasha was right, he had eaten meat from several different Pokémon just in the past few days and Meowth regularly hunted the local wildlife whenever they were out of a city. However, until now he had been removed from the killing and had trouble associating a butchered breast or thigh and the Pokémon it came from.

Luckily, Patrick's internal monologue on the ethics of hunting was cut short by a small brownish-red spec slowly drifting across the sky. He watched with interest as it slowly circled the valley twice before veering off and continuing its flight elsewhere.

"Whatcha looking at?" Tasha said from behind Patrick, making him jump. She had already finished her work. Leaving the remains further off the trail to feed any scavengers and packing the rest in her pack to be cooked later that day. Meowth came down the path as well, licking her lips from her light snack.

"I just saw a Pokémon fly a few loops around the valley and then fly off," Patrick said, tearing his eyes from the sky. "Probably the grieving family of the Starly you murdered," Patrick added.

"Ha Ha," Tasha laughed sarcastically. "Starly are solitary as soon as they can fly. We should get moving though. The smell of blood will attract Pokémon..."

0000

Later that night, Patrick was tasked with setting up the campsite while Tasha busily prepared the dinner and got a campfire going. In the growing darkness, Patrick noticed several pinpricks of light on the mountainside across from them.

"Think those are other trainers?" Patrick called to his companion who was carefully feeding more wood to their fire.

Squinting in the direction Patrick was pointing, and slowly letting her eyes adjust to the dark, Tasha finally saw the lights Patrick was talking about and nodded.

"Yeah, probably a group of hikers. The trail doesn't go that way, so it's not a trade caravan." Tasha commented, attention already back on their campfire. "I don't know why they have five campfires though. They are bringing way too much attention to themselves with that much light."

Shrugging, Patrick got back to work as well.