Chapter 28: Toxified Training
"So this is treetop Town," Ash commented. Shortly after exiting the forest Ash and Nikki found themselves entering Treetop Town, the site of Ash's second Legenda League Gym battle.
"I can see where the place got its name," Nikki said. The town itself was part of the surrounding forest with many of the homes either built around the trees or in them.
"The people who live here must be real in-tune with nature," Nikki remarked.
"You can say that again," Ash agreed. As they gazed about the town they soon spotted the Pokémon Center.
"Come on. I still need to get Typhlosion checked up," Ash said. Remembering the predicament the Volcano Pokémon was just in the two trainers hurried to the Pokémon Center.
As soon as Ash and Nikki entered the Pokémon Center they gave their Pokémon to Nurse Joy for a check-up, Ash making sure to mention Typhlosion's ordeal from the forest. Nurse Joy promised to give them all thorough check-ups, giving Ash and Nikki time to make some phone calls.
"Oh Ash, it sound beautiful," Delia commented.
"It sure is, Mom. I've never seen anywhere like it before," Ash declared.
"One of these days Mimey and I are going to have to let you take us to all the places you've been to over the years. I'd love to see the different places you've traveled to," she sighed.
"Yeah. We could make it a family vacation," Ash suggested.
"That sounds like a wonderful idea," Delia agreed. "Well honey, you take care now."
"I will," Ash promised. As he hung up with his mother Nikki was finishing a phone call with her mother.
"I'll call you when we reach the next town," Nikki said.
"Okay, dear. Take care." With their phone calls done the two trainers headed towards the front desk, and not a moment too soon. Right at that moment a chime went off and Nurse Joy appeared from the back carrying two trays containing Ash and Nikki's Poké Balls. Pikachu and Buneary were riding on her shoulders.
"Your Pokémon are all in perfect health," she announced. "Also, Ash, your Typhlosion has made a full recovery."
"That's great. Looks like that Candyss Grass medicine you made did the trick after all," Ash commented.
"I'm glad. Who knows how bad it would have gotten if I hadn't remembered that," Nikki said.
"By the way, are either of you here to challenge the Gym?" Nurse Joy wondered.
"I am," Ash announced.
"Well, I should tell you that the Treetop Town Gym Leader only uses Grass types," Nurse Joy informed him.
"Grass types, huh. Looks like I'll have to bring over the others from Professor Oak's lab," Ash assumed.
"If they're anything like Ivysaur and Torterra then I'm sure you'll do great in the Gym battle," Nikki commented.
"They are," Ash confirmed as he once again sat down in front of a videophone. He dialed the professor's number and waited for him to pick up.
"Hello, Oak Research Lab." The person who answered the phone, though, wasn't who he was expecting.
"Tracey?" Ash questioned.
"Oh, hey Ash," Tracey said. "It's been a while. How are you?"
"I'm doing fine," Ash replied. Immediately after that Tracey spotted Nikki.
"You must be Nikki, Ash's new traveling partner," Tracey assumed. "I'm Tracey. Ash and I traveled through the Orange Islands."
"It's nice to meet you," Nikki greeted.
"Likewise," Tracey replied. "Now I'm sure you didn't call to chat about the good old days. What can I do for you?"
"I need to exchange some of my Pokémon for my Gym battle," Ash explained. "Is Professor Oak around?"
"No, he left on some trip. Said he had some huge project he needed to help a friend with," Tracey replied. "I can make the transfers for you."
"Sure," Ash said. Minutes later Ash had sent over Typhlosion, Totodile and Donphan in exchange for Bayleef, Sceptile and Torterra.
"Thanks, Tracey. Give my regards to Professor Oak," Ash said.
"Will do. Good luck in your Gym battle," Tracey replied. As the call ended Ash got up and headed for the door, Nikki following closely behind him. Once they were outside Ash grabbed four Poké Balls and tossed them.
"Come on out!" he called. From within the Poké Balls emerged Ivysaur, Bayleef, Sceptile and Torterra.
"Wow," Nikki commented. During this Sceptile walked over to one of the trees and reached up, breaking off a small twig. He then placed the twig in his mouth before leaning back against the tree. Nikki observed this with a puzzled look on her face.
"Does he always do that?" she asked.
"Every time," Ash answered.
"Well they all look strong," Nikki said.
"That they do." Turning around they spotted a young girl. She had short red hair that barely reached her shoulders and wore a green vest and a grass skirt.
"Are these your Pokémon?" she asked.
"Yes, they're mine," Ash answered. The group watched as she approached each Grass type and gazed at them. Her blue eyes seemed to light up as she studied each one.
"Oh, I'm just in love with your Pokémon," she gushed. "Would you be willing to trade one of them to me? Please?"
"Sorry, but I'm not trading any of them," Ash politely refused. "Besides, I need them for my Gym battle."
"You're here for a Gym battle, huh," the girl commented. "Well that changes things."
"How so?" Nikki wondered.
"My name is Fiona, and I am the Treetop Town Gym Leader," she declared. Ash and Nikki were shocked at first, but Ash quickly got over it and issued his challenge.
"If you're the Gym Leader then I challenge you to a Gym battle!" he declared.
"And I accept!" Fiona replied. "I'll be waiting for you at the Gym. Come whenever you're ready." With that she walked off, leaving Ash to prepare for his upcoming Gym battle.
"Oh yeah! Time to win badge number 2!" Ash cheered.
"Hold it, Ash. Don't you remember what happened last time you charged in to a Gym battle without a plan?" Nikki warned.
"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten. That's why I'm going to come up with a plan right now," Ash stated. "Now, what should I focus on first?"
"(Maybe you should start by seeing what does and doesn't do well against Grass types,)" Buneary suggested.
"Good idea," Nikki praised. "I know Grass Pokémon are weak to Fire, Flying, Bug, Poison and Ice attacks but they resist Grass, Water and Ground attacks."
"In that case I need to see what attacks my Pokémon know," Ash said. He took out his Pokédex and scanned each of his Grass types, starting with Torterra.
"Let's see… Torterra knows Leaf Storm, Energy Ball, Earthquake and Rock Climb," Ash read.
"Three of those attacks aren't very good against Grass types. Rock Climb is the best attack he's got," Nikki commented. "What about the others?" Ash then scanned Sceptile.
"Leaf Storm, Quick Attack, Leaf Blade and Solarbeam," Ash said. "Not much better than Torterra's."
"You're right. Quick Attack is Sceptile's best option," Nikki said. Next was Bayleef.
"Her moves are a bit better. Body Slam, Razor Leaf, Vine Whip and Tackle," Ash commented.
"That is a bit better. You've got two good moves with her," Nikki agreed. "What about Ivysaur? What does he know?" Ash scanned Ivysaur, but what he saw didn't leave him with a good feeling.
"Razor Leaf, Vine Whip, Solarbeam and Leech Seed. Nothing but Grass moves," Ash announced.
"That's not good. All of his moves are resisted by Grass types," Nikki commented. Hearing this Ivysaur hung his head.
"(Sorry, Ash. Guess I'll be more of a liability in the Gym battle than an asset,)" the Seed Pokémon sighed.
"It's not your fault, Ivysaur. I never thought there would be a point in time where you'd need to learn new moves," Ash said.
"(But now that he needs to how do we go about teaching him?)" Pikachu wondered.
"Not only that, but what should he learn?" Ash added. The group thought about this for a while before Nikki came to a realization.
"Hold on. Ivysaur is part Poison type, right? That means he should be able to learn some Poison type moves," she stated.
"(That's right! If he knew some Poison moves then he'd be your ace-in-the-hole!)" Pikachu exclaimed.
"If it's Poison type moves he needs to learn then I know just who to call on," Ash said. He then rushed back inside the Pokémon Center. While Ash was gone Ivysaur tried to think of what his trainer was doing. Before he could come to a conclusion Ash came back out clutching a Poké Ball in his hand.
"What was the rush for?" Nikki inquired.
"I had to make one more Pokémon exchange," Ash explained. He then tossed the Poké Ball in his hand into the air, calling out the Pokémon inside.
"(Ash!)" The next thing anyone knew Ash was being engulfed by an overly-excited Muk. Pikachu, thankfully, managed to get away from Ash before the Poison type pounced.
"I'm happy to see you too, Muk, but would you please get off me," Ash groaned.
"(Same old Muk,)" Pikachu sighed as Muk got off his trainer. Having never seen Muk before Nikki scanned him with her Pokédex:
Muk, the Sludge Pokémon and the evolved form of Grimer. They love to gather in smelly areas where sludge accumulates, making the stench around them worse.
"I'm going to make a wild guess and say that the reason you brought your Muk here is to help teach Ivysaur a Poison type move, right?" Nikki assumed.
"You got it. I figured that if anyone could help Ivysaur learn a Poison type attack it would be a Poison type Pokémon," Ash explained. "So, you think you can help, Muk?"
"(I'll give it my best shot,)" the Sludge Pokémon replied.
"That's all I ask," Ash said. "In the meantime I'll need to figure out battle strategies for everyone else."
"We'll help," Nikki offered.
"Thanks," Ash said. While they went to plan for the Gym battle Muk spoke with Ivysaur about the Gym battle.
"(Okay, so what type of Gym are you going up against?)" Muk asked.
"(A Grass type,)" Ivysaur answered. This left Muk a bit confused.
"(No offense but if you're going against a Grass type Gym then why not use a type that has an advantage like Flying or Fire?)" he wondered.
"(Ash has to use Grass types. It's how the League here is set up.)" Ivysaur then spent the next few moments explaining the rules of the Legenda League to Muk. When he was done the Sludge Pokémon had a shocked look on his face.
"(So let me get this straight… if Ash faces a gym Leader or Area Boss that uses Poison type Pokémon then he can only use Poison type Pokémon to battle them?)" Muk inquired.
"(That's it in a nutshell,)" Ivysaur confirmed. "(For that reason Ash needs me to learn Poison attacks so I can be more effective in the Gym battle.)" Muk took a moment to think.
"(There are plenty of Poison type moves I could teach you, but there's one in particular I know will be perfect,)" he said.
"(Really? What?)" Ivysaur inquired.
"(Sludge Bomb,)" Muk answered. "(It's one of the strongest Poison attacks there is.)"
"(You really think I can learn it?)" Ivysaur wondered.
"(I have no doubt that you can learn this,)" Muk declared. Things were sounding better and better for Ivysaur. However, one question still lingered in his mind.
"(How quickly do you think I can learn this attack?)" the Seed Pokémon inquired. Muk thought a bit before giving an answer.
"(Well… if things go well you'll be using Sludge Bomb by the end of the day,)" he replied. This further boosted Ivysaur's confidence.
"(Well what are we waiting for? Let's get to work!)" the Seed Pokémon declared.
"(Alright then,)" Muk replied. "(The first thing we need to work on is building up the attack. What you're going to need to do is focus the attack on one central point.)" To demonstrate what he was talking about Muk opened his mouth and gathered up a ball of sludge. He then spit it out, striking a rock 15 feet in front of them.
"(Wow…)" Ivysaur gasped. Muk then turned to Ivysaur.
"(Now you try it,)" he said. Still filled with confidence Ivysaur stepped up and prepared to try his luck.
"(Remember to gather enough sludge to form the attack before attempting to fire,)" the Sludge Pokémon instructed. With a nod Ivysaur began to power up the attack. Using his bulb as his focusing point he gathered the sludge together, forming it into a ball.
"(Good. Now aim for the rock and let it rip!)" Muk cheered. He aimed at the rock and let the attack fly. Unfortunately for Ivysaur the attack didn't travel far at all and ended up landing on top of his head.
"(Gah!)" the Seed Pokémon groaned as he shook the sludge off his head. "(What went wrong?)"
"(From what I could tell you didn't put enough force behind your attack,)" Muk observed. "(Let's try again.)" Again Ivysaur attempted to use Sludge Bomb, this time making sure not to repeat the mistake he had made previously. After gathering enough sludge for the attack he aimed at the rock and fired, putting more force behind it than last time. Unlike last time there was enough force to make the attack travel a fair distance, but shortly after being fired the Sludge Bomb broke apart, scattering in front of the two Pokémon.
"(Now what happened?)" Ivysaur groaned.
"(That time it looked like you put too much force behind it,)" Muk said. Ivysaur let out an annoyed sigh.
"(Nothing I do seems to work. I either don't put enough behind the attack or I put too much behind it,)" he complained. By this time Ash, Nikki and the rest of the Pokémon had returned.
"How's it going, guys?" Ash asked.
"(Not good,)" Ivysaur groaned.
"What's wrong?" Nikki wondered.
"(We can't quite get the execution right,)" Muk said.
"(That's an understatement. I'm either using too much power or not enough,)" Ivysaur explained.
"(That's quite a problem,)" Buneary commented. "(There's got to be something we can do to help.)" The group thought about it for a bit.
"(Maybe being in a battle would help,)" Pikachu suggested.
"That may work," Ash said. "What do you think, Ivysaur?"
"(If you think it'll help then I'll do it,)" the Seed Pokémon agreed. "(But… who would I battle against?)"
"(I'll face you,)" Muk announced.
"Are you sure?" Ash asked.
"(I'm the one trying to help him learn the attack, so it's only right that I be the one who faces him,)" the Sludge Pokémon explained.
"He's right, you know," Nikki commented. Ash had no arguments and allowed Muk to be Ivysaur's opponent. The two Pokémon stood apart, ready to begin their battle.
"Alright… begin!" Ash announced.
"(Get ready! Here I come!)" Ivysaur roared. He then sprang into action, firing a Razor Leaf volley at Muk. The Sludge Pokémon, though, simply brushed the attack off.
"(That's not good enough!)" Muk countered. He retaliated with Sludge Bomb, firing the sludge-powered attack at the Grass and Poison type.
"(Now, you do it!)" Muk instructed. Just like before Ivysaur powered up a Sludge Bomb, but the attack broke apart immediately upon the Seed Pokémon firing it.
"(Try again!)" Muk ordered. Again Ivysaur tried and again the attack failed.
"(It's not good! I can't get it right!)" Ivysaur groaned.
"(No! Don't you dare give up!)" Muk roared. He once again fired a Sludge Bomb at Ivysaur, this time making solid contact.
"(Don't you want to get stronger?)" Muk asked.
"(Of course I do!)" Ivysaur replied.
"(Then prove it to me!)" Muk challenged. He lunged forward, looking to deliver a Body Slam to Ivysaur. The Seed Pokémon was quick to react, though, and jumped out of the way. While Muk was regaining his bearings Ivysaur decided to try Sludge Bomb once again. Figuring that the ball of sludge wasn't large enough to be fired effectively Ivysaur tried gathering more sludge than he had, but before getting a chance to fire the attack the attack exploded.
"(You have to try harder!)" Muk shouted. Ivysaur continued to try and successfully use Sludge Bomb, but each tine something would go wrong.
"Things aren't looking too good," Nikki commented. "If Ivysaur can't get Sludge Bomb to work then what's going to happen in the Gym battle?"
"I don't know. All we can do is hope that Ivysaur can learn Sludge Bomb in time," Ash said. By now Ivysaur was running low on energy. Each failed attempt at Sludge Bomb left him weaker and weaker, while Muk had barely broken a sweat.
"(Come on! That's not everything you've got!)" Muk shouted. Ivysaur looked up at him, the Seed Pokémon breathing incredibly hard.
"(If you want to help Ash win his Gym battle then you'll need more power than this,)" Muk said. "(You do want to help him, don't you?)"
"(Y-Yes… I do…)" Ivysaur panted.
"(I don't believe you,)" Muk argued. "(Say it louder.)"
"(I want to help Ash,)" Ivysaur said.
"(Louder!)" Muk demanded.
"(I want to help Ash!)" Ivysaur repeated.
"(Say it like you mean it!)" Muk shouted.
"(I want to help Ash!)" Ivysaur roared. At that moment Ivysaur began to glow white.
"No way!" Nikki gasped. "Ivysaur's evolving!" Everyone looked on in awe as Ivysaur's body grew to incredible size. The bulb on his back also grew larger, blooming as it grew ever larger. A loud bellow echoed through the area as Ivysaur completed his evolution.
"He's a Venusaur now!" Ash cheered. He immediately took out his Pokédex and scanned his new Pokémon.
Venusaur, the Seed Pokémon and the evolved form of Ivysaur. By spreading the broad petals of its flower and catching the sun's rays, it fills its body with power.
"Awesome!" Ash exclaimed. "You've definitely got enough power to take on the Gym."
"(Yeah… especially since I can do this!)" Everyone watched as he took aim at Muk and fired a successful Sludge Bomb. Despite being a Poison type himself the power Venusaur put behind the attack caused Muk to cover up. Once the Sludge Pokémon let his guard down he saw Venusaur smirking at him.
"(Well now, that had some power behind it,)" Muk commented.
"(What do you expect? I had a great teacher,)" Venusaur replied, putting a smile on Muk's face.
"(Way to go, Venusaur,)" Sceptile praised.
"(We're all so happy for you,)" Bayleef said.
"(Looks like I'm not the only heavyweight Grass type here,)" Torterra remarked.
"Looks like you're ready for your Gym battle, Ash," Nikki commented.
"Not yet," Ash argued, catching everyone by surprise.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Nikki wondered.
"Well, if Venusaur can learn a new move then why not everyone else? The way I see it if everyone learns a new move we'll be that much more prepared for the Gym battle," Ash explained.
"That makes a lot of sense," Nikki said.
"(Yeah. Good work thinking ahead,)" Pikachu praised. With his suggestion being praised Ash turned to his Grass types.
"What do you say we get to work," he said. A chorus of Pokémon calls followed as the group got busy improving their chances at the Treetop Gym.
At the end of the day Ash, Nikki and the Pokémon were spent. They had spent the entire day training, and in their opinion things had turned out better than they had hoped.
"I'm telling you, Ash, if today's training was any indication your Pokémon are more than ready to take on Fiona and her Grass types," Nikki commented.
"I agree. I just hope they're physically ready for the battle tomorrow," Ash said.
"(I wouldn't worry about that. Nurse Joy said they'll be fighting fit in the morning,)" Pikachu reassured.
"Yeah, you're right," Ash agreed. "I guess all I can do is make sure I'm ready, and to do that I'll need a good night's sleep." With those final words he laid his head down and drifted off to sleep. Shortly afterwards Nikki, Pikachu and Buneary joined him. Tomorrow would be a big day for them.
Ash's Pokémon team received a much-needed boost in power in the form of Ivysaur evolving into Venusaur. With a new powerhouse on his team and new moves in his aresenal how will Ash fare in his upcoming Gym battle? Find out in the next chapter of Search for Power!
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