Journey

Death of Duty

Part 3: The Battle of Celadon

Roads

The wild… the real wild? It's more dangerous than anybody expects. — Pastoria Gym Leader "Crasher" Wake

I woke with the morning call, scrambling out of bed to make it down to reception in time for checkout. I made it with four minutes to spare, my balls slotted into place on my belt and my pack hastily crammed back together. I wasn't pretty, but I was awake. I'd be on the road anyways, so it didn't matter too much if I missed a shower.

I stopped by the gym on my way out of town. Surge apparently wasn't in, so I left a quick message with the gym receptionist. I apologized that I had to refuse his offer and promised to return for an elite challenge when I was ready.

The bar I'd frequented the night before was open, but still empty as I passed it. I thought I could see the figure of Frank, still sleeping at the bar. Aya wasn't behind the bar, a wiry man with ragged blond hair was pouring a beer and shoving it towards Frank.

I opened my pokegear and scrolled through the unread messages. Gemma had been spamming me with unintelligible nonsense, probably trying to get my attention since I hadn't answered her celebration calls after the match. I scrolled past them and set my eyes on the only message I cared about.

Call me when you reach Celadon. Hope we can meet again soon,

-Aya

I read the message half a hundred times before I sighed happily to myself and tapped out a quick answer promising that I would call as soon as I could. I scrolled back up to Gemma's messages with a happy heart. I started typing out a message, and my gear began ringing.

I answered Gemma with a huff. "Y'know, I was literally just answering you."

"Can it, Novice. Domitian was worried. We hadn't heard from you a whole day."

"Got to drinking," I said quietly. "Spent the night out."

"Ooooooooo," Gemma squealed. "Made yourself an appreciative fan, huh? Getting a nice juicy taste of that fame?"

I sighed heavily. "Wasn't like that, Gemma. We just talked, about family mostly." I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. Despite the sleep I'd gotten, I was pushing myself harder than ever before. I needed rest, real rest that I wasn't likely to get any time soon. "I'm just tired."

"You alright?" she asked. Her tone was softer and I felt the sincerity in her tone. "The match looked rough. Is everyone alright?"

"Pride might not be ready for Erika. Cracked half his ribs in the explosion and Acolyte can barely walk without crashing into something. Luna's alright for the most part, but I don't think I can rely on her to solo an intermediate gym challenge."

"So delay the match. Nobody's gonna think less of you. He'll, you might even get some good press when they put out the news, maybe I could get daddy to pull some strings with one of the networks. We could get a whole deep dive into your previous matches in the same time slot. It'd get some good traction, probably start building your fan base more seriously."

I stopped walking. More fame. More praise heaped on me when none was deserved. "Is it weird to be uncomfortable with the spotlight like this?"

She paused for a moment. "You get used to it," she said. "It isn't easy at first, but after a while it's like nobody's watching."

"Easy for you to say," I replied. "You're a natural. I've never met anybody else this…" I trailed off, looking for the word.

"Enthusiastic?" she asked.

I smirked. "I like that. You're definitely enthusiastic."

"Oh shut it," she replied. "I've been cooped up in a stupid boring office tower for a month and a half. I deserve some kind of outlet for my enthusiasm."

"No more attacks on the building?"

"None," she replied. "There's been rioting in the streets every so often since the attacks, but nobody has made a move on the building since the day I got here. The people are fighting back against the lockdowns and someone has started to stir shit up." She got quiet and I could feel her hesitation through the phone. "Things are bad here, Marcus. Silph's close to something huge, but there's something shady going on. Someone wants this new product and they're willing to kill for it."

"Mind if I ask what this product is?"

"You can ask all you want," she replied curtly. "I don't even know what it is, and my father is the project lead." She paused for a minute and I didn't break the silence. "I… I'm scared, Marcus. I don't know who to trust. Dad's been saying that Silph might be compromised and that I shouldn't trust anybody but him…"

"Listen to him," I said. "If what he says is true, then even our conversation can't be trusted as secret."

I heard her sigh in frustration. "Look at you, being all responsible. Of course you'd agree with him. When did you lose your balls?"

"Well, maybe he's right. What does it hurt to be careful?" I paused and contemplated my next words. My heart was pounding, screaming at me to tell Gemma that her father was right. My mind couldn't look past Curie and tell my friend the truth. "Look," I started, carefully considering every word. I couldn't be too overtly open or Domino might catch wind of me warning Silph. "let's say that Silph is compromised. Let's say that the company has been infiltrated by whoever is after this project. Both our poke gears were provided by the company. Both are on Silph's mobile network. Someone, somewhere in the company could access the calls, read our texts. Maybe it's just me being paranoid, but I don't trust that this is truly a private line if what your father suspects is true."

She was silent, contemplating my words. I couldn't come out and tell her anything concrete, but I hoped that she was smart enough to figure out where I was leading her.

"And if my father is just being paranoid?" she asked.

"Do you want to take that chance?" I asked. "It doesn't hurt anybody to be careful, Gemma. These people already tried to get to you once, they killed Lilith. What's stopping them from pulling the same shit again? I don't want to see you get hurt because you weren't careful."

"I know," she replied in a defeated tone. "It's just so damn boring here. I sit and watch league highlights day after day. My team is bored, I'm bored and the other Silph trainers here are bored."

"There's worse things than being bored," I replied. I stopped walking as I reached Vermillion's north gate. "Anyways, I gotta get on the road. Still have a date to keep with Erika."

She sighed heavily and I could practically feel her frustration through the phone. "I guess," she said. "Call me when you get to Celadon?"

"Of course," I answered. "You'll be the second call I make."

I heard her voice rise. "Cheap booty comes first?" she asked playfully.

I couldn't help the goofy smile. "Wasn't like that, Gemma. And it definitely wasn't cheap. Silph would know, they paid."

"Atta boy!" she said. "Get moving then. Good luck, Novice!"

She ended the call as I spluttered angrily at being called a novice. I sighed and closed the gear. With a smile on my face and my troubles mostly forgotten, I stepped out onto Route Eleven to begin my journey to Celadon.

With Saffron locked down, the easy route through Kanto's largest city was closed. I had two options. I could take the long road east from Vermillion and loop back around by way of Lavender town so I could pass through the underground tunnels under Saffron. I didn't have the time for that, so I was forced to travel towards Saffron and cut through the harsh wilderness southwest of the city. It was not my first choice, but teleport services were backed up for weeks and the other path would take too long.

The road to Saffron was nearly empty, only a few novice trainers making their way to Vermillion by way of Cerulean. They didn't deign to challenge an intermediate like me, something that I was privately happy for. My team was in no shape for a serious battle and I would have been thoroughly embarrassed by a loss to a novice.

We made camp along with a trio of kids, all making their way to Vermillion for their battle with Surge. I stayed around the fire, happy to have a chance to sleep comfortably for a portion of the night. None of them were in the mood for conversation, something I learned after one of them angrily shouted at another over a pokemon's death. I kept out of it, not wanting to get involved in someone else's drama.

I took last watch, waiting until the sun was well above the tree line. I woke one of the trainers, apologizing and confessing that I had to get an early start to my travels.

The sun was damn hot that day. We kept off the main road as much as possible, keeping to the shady forests that flanked this part of the road. We followed a game trail that kept the road within view most of the time. Luna kept us well clear of anything dangerous and we cut back onto the road more than once to avoid a victreebell nest.

I reached Saffron's southern gate by the end of the second day. Saffron Ranger Command had an entire camp set up, directing passing trainers into the underground path. I didn't have any intent on travelling further that day, so I set up in one of the temporary bunks and got an early start to planning my journey across Kanto's always dangerous central forests.

My chosen route would get me to Celadon the day before my challenge was scheduled. I had no margin for error, only three days before I absolutely had to be cutting back onto the league sanctioned route between Saffron and Celadon. Any later and I was forgoing my pokemon a night in the pokemon centre before what was likely to be a tough battle.

My thoughts drifted to possible new team members as I stared at the map. I contemplated searching out a growlithe, but the thought of facing down a wild arcanine for one of its young was daunting to say the least. I didn't really need a second fire type either. My team was already going to have two ground types once Pride evolved, so adding a second fire type would only increase my team's overall weakness to water types.

I stared bleakly at my pokegear map, scrolling through the pokemon usually found around Saffron. Persian leapt out at me, both as the strongest catch and a decent add to my team. Oddish, bellsprout and tangela intrigued me and would be great counters to water types. That didn't really help me against Erika though, who would be sure to outclass any grass types I brought to battle. I noted them down as options anyways and made a mental note to keep an eye out for them. Tangela were exceedingly rare and I could likely trade one for a comparably rare pokemon if I ultimately wasn't happy with it.

I switched over to evolution research, pulling up known methods of nidorino evolution. Most cases involved waiting until the nidorino in question was between four and eight years old, however some cases of spontaneous evolution had been recorded in younger specimens. Pride was only two at my best guess, still young enough to have most of his spines intact and not snapped off from years of battle.

A pack of nidorino had been reported to undergo spontaneous evolution when exposed to samples of moon rocks by researchers in Pewter. However, the result was not consistent and the researchers suggested that it may still rely on the individual pokemon's strength. Some sporadic research had been done since with conflicting results, but no in depth studies had been conducted since.

I don't know when I passed out, but I woke with Luna nudging my hand. The sun was starting to rise and several rangers were already up around the camp. Luna stretched herself out alongside me and yawned.

I had my things packed and ready to go in minutes. I stopped at the camp's mess tent and grabbed a quick breakfast. Scrambled pidgey eggs and fried hash browns weren't much but it was free. I stuffed a few ration bars into my pack and left before the sun started to climb the sky.

I followed a game trail, feet carefully tracing Luna's path. She kept us to the trail while I glanced back down at my compass after every turn. It twisted and wound through the forest, crossing small streams and winding back on itself as we went.

Pride was further off the trail, crashing through the underbrush as he went. He seemed incapable of stealthy movement and I tried not to worry about the attention he was drawing. He seemed back to his regular stubborn self and I heard him bellow a challenge at some unseen pokemon more than once. He never did come limping back, but I could tell he was hurting the few times he drew back into view.

Acolyte followed close behind me, his club held up warily as he glanced nervously around at the forest. He was uncomfortable with the forest pressing in at him and was clearly claustrophobic. He was used to rocky, open expanses and jumped at every shifting leaf.

Despite the claustrophobia, he fared well enough. He had healed enough for some lighter training and didn't seem overly affected by the concussion he had experienced.

We forged a path westward as best we could. I made sure to keep Saffron's south wall within view, only losing it when the trees began to get thicker. I called Pride back to me and had him stay close after that. Even with Acolyte watching my back, I didn't want a persian getting the drop on me. I wouldn't last long enough under one of the big cat's claws for Acolyte to save me.

We made decent time even in thicker brush. Acolyte and Pride proved themselves relatively able at clearing my path, as unsuited as they were for the heavily forested environment. We didn't have much trouble with wild pokemon either, most of them giving us a wide berth. A few overly aggressive bellsprout tried to start shit at one point, but Luna took care of them easily.

Luna was right at home. I had caught her on the edge of the forest near our farm. Vulpix were native to forests like this and my starter acted like she had barely been away for a moment. I kept catching glimpses of her tails flashing past in pursuit of some unseen pokemon. She would come back a few minutes later, licking her chops and looking satisfied.

We made camp against Saffron's south wall when the sunlight peeking through the trees began to dim. I didn't dare start a fire for fear of attracting a persian, so I chewed on one of the ration bars I'd taken from the Ranger camp. I clambered up a tree and tied myself to the trunk as night fell and the light began to die.

The rain woke me. I felt the light splatter of raindrops falling on my face and yawned with a stretch.

My pokemon were happy to stretch their legs after a night in their balls. They fanned out around me, never straying out of earshot. Acolyte kept close to me the entire time, eschewing exploration for diligence. As far as he was concerned, I was his to protect.

More than once I heard the telltale scuffle of pokemon battling. Luna or Pride would come trotting back, proudly displaying their battle wounds as if they were showing off. There was nothing too bad, mostly just small cuts or bruises where grass types had attempted to latch on. I emptied most of a potion throughout the day, tending to my pokemon's injuries as we forged west.

The forest started to thin as the day went on and we left Saffron's wall behind. Trees were thicker, but but further in between. The canopy seemed to blot out the sky, giving us some cover from the increasingly heavy rain.

Luna pulled back to me and scowled as the rain began to fall on her fur. Her tails looked sad and thin, the fur soaked down to the skin. I couldn't help but hide a smirk whenever she shook off.

I set to training while we travelled. Luna needed stopping power, some real heat behind her flames. Right now they were dangerous, but dangerous only gets you so far in the league. She had honed her technique well and could hold a jet of flames about twelve feet in length. However, it wasn't nearly hot enough.

I had her focus exclusively on improving the heat of her flamethrower. She was improving, but we still weren't where I needed her to be. It wasn't fair to expect so much from her. Even if she would never voice a complaint, I couldn't expect her to win every one of my gym challenges for me.

Pride was more difficult to train with his injuries. He was still sore, especially along his sides. He had cracked nearly every rib in his body and tanked a volt tackle from Surge's intermediate raichu. I was sure that the same attack from his elite raichu would have killed him outright. As it was, he could still barely deliver a blow without pulling back from the pain.

I kept up his agility and endurance training, easing up my expectations. I think he understood his limitations because he didn't venture out half as far as he had the day before. He kept just ahead of me, pulling back to my side whenever an aggressive pokemon came near us.

Acolyte seemed to relax somewhat once the dense foliage cleared. He still seemed somewhat jumpy, but he was much more receptive to direction now that his anxiety was easing. I had him dispatch anything that got close to us. I was still analyzing his fighting style, so I hadn't managed to put together a specific training plan yet. Instead, I had him battle as he saw fit. I kept a close eye on him, watching his style of feints and counterattacks.

The rain let up at some point in the evening. I decided we'd gone far enough and set up camp the same as the night before. I nodded off as the skies began to clear and the stars started to peek through the canopy.

I woke to a soft scratching sound. It seemed to come from somewhere above me, but I couldn't see exactly where. I knew it wasn't a persian. I'd be dead already if one of the predators had found me. I twisted around and peered up the tree as I slowly untied myself. I dropped the rope off the branch and pulled myself up to my feet.

The scratching stopped suddenly. I heard something scrape loudly and begin descending towards me. My heart leapt into my throat as I envisioned myself being disemboweled thirty feet in the air.

I scrambled down that tree, nearly losing my footing on the first branch. The scraping continued, following me at a steady pace. I reached a relatively stable branch and looked back up at the descending noise. It was gaining on me too fast. I wouldn't be able to reach the ground before it was on me. I steadied myself for half a moment and jumped.

Something grabbed me by the wrist as I leapt and pulled back hard. I felt myself rising into the air and thrashed madly. Then disaster struck. My arm popped out of its socket with a sick crunch. I shrieked in pain and felt the pressure on my wrist disappear as i dropped from the sky.

I landed on a branch, the wind driving from my chest as I wrapped myself around the branch. It was still maybe a fifteen foot drop to the ground and I held on for dear life. Then a pair of armoured green feet landed on the branch beside me.

The branch bent and I heard the unmistakable groan-pop of cracking wood. I glanced up at my attacker and felt my stomach rise as the branch gave way. I slammed down on my side, grunting in pain. A sharp pain shot down my arm and I swore loudly over my groans of pain.

My left arm lay limply on the ground. I groaned and rolled, scrabbling at my belt with my good arm as my vision swam. I found the release button on one of the balls and prayed.

Acolyte appeared from his ball, raising his club instinctively at the encroaching foliage.

"Up!" I shouted. "It's in the tree!"

A deep, green blur slammed into Acolyte. He took the blow in the chest, sliding backwards as he held his footing. They ground to a halt and I got my first clear look at the pokemon. It had a long horn that ended in a pair of wicked prongs that were buried in my marowak's chest. A pair of thick wings buzzed angrily on its back and folded back under a plate of chitin that slid back into place.

The heracross pressed harder, forcing the prongs of its horn deeper into Acolyte's chest. It chittered incoherently and tossed its head back. Acolyte flipped end over end, slamming into a tree trunk and crashing to a violent stop in the dirt.

I scrambled backwards, fumbling desperately with my ball belt. My left arm hung limply at my side, every movement bringing another wave of sharp agony. I stopped as my back hit a tree trunk and looked up at the heracross. It flicked its tongue, a long thin appendage the length of my arm.

I was gonna die, eaten by a bug the size of me. I closed my eyes as my hand brushed against the belt's emergency release function. Two spears of red light erupted from my waist. They landed on either side of the heracross, coalescing into my two pokemon. I didn't have time for orders, I only prayed that my pokemon knew what to do.

The heracross glanced between Pride and Luna dumbly. He was confused, baffled by the appearance of new set of foes. Time seemed to slow down as the wild pokemon curiously sniffed at Luna. It's tongue flitted out again, lightly brushing against Luna's flank.

It took all of a fraction of a second for Luna to flare her tails and spew a jet of flame at the bug.

The heracross screeched in pain as the flames chewed away at its carapace. It charged through the flames, instinctively responding to the attack. It barrelled through Luna's flamethrower and drove an armoured fist into her side. Luna yelped in pain and dashed away before the heracross could follow up with a more serious blow.

Pride slammed into the heracross from behind, attempting to draw the attention off of Luna. The bug shifted its weight and lifted Pride off the ground. My nidorino came crashing back down, his own momentum used to counter his attack. He whined in pain as he slowly dragged himself back to his feet and kept his distance from our foe.

Acolyte leapt out of the underbrush, his club raised as he crossed the small clearing at the base of the trees. The heracross' carapace opened and it lifted off the ground as its wings buzzed furiously. The bug turned laboriously as Acolyte swung with all his might.

Acolyte's blow knocked the heracross out of the air and sent the bug skittering across the clearing. It fluttered and wobbled, trying to regain its balance as Acolyte bellowed a challenge.

Luna leapt into action as the heracross righted itself, hacking up a glowing ball of spectral flame. She sent the will-o-wisp spinning through the air. It splashed harmlessly against a tree, a half a moment too late to catch the heracross.

"Pin it!" I shouted. "Slow the damn thing down."

Acolyte leapt across the clearing, intercepting the heracross with a mighty swing of his club. The bug batted away the club with its horn and grabbed Acolyte as it charged. They soared across the clearing and into a tree. The heracross slammed Acolyte into the tree, holding fast to his bone club. My marowak shoved back, trying to free himself and his weapon.

The heracross' wings buzzed again and Acolyte flailed as he was lifted off the ground. It was all the opening the heracross needed. It hammered one fist into Acolyte's dominant elbow, forcing him to release his club. The heracross hooked its arms around Acolyte's chest and lifted off the ground.

My marowak struggled in vain. He thrashed for all he was worth, but the heracross was unyielding. It carried my pokemon higher, punching through the canopy and rising into open air.

My eyes widened when I realized what the heracross meant to do. I fumbled at my belt for a moment and raised Acolyte's ball. I would have moments, maybe a fraction of a second for what I had in mind. I watched carefully for any sign of my marowak, any sign of the heracross.

The canopy burst half a moment later, Acolyte screaming in abject terror. I tapped the return button, praying that it would work fast enough.

Acolyte disappeared in a flash of red light inches off the ground. I released him again in front of me, completely unharmed from the attack. He knelt down and picked up his club just as the heracross burst through the canopy to view its handiwork.

"Bonemerang!" I shouted.

Acolyte's aim was true. The club soared through the air, curving unnaturally as it turned towards the heracross. It wasn't expecting a ranged attack from Acolyte and turned away in a vain attempt to escape the flying club. It smashed into the heracross from behind and the flying bug lost control of its flight.

It smashed off a tree and spun helpless to the ground. It crashed down hard, mangled wings buzzing uselessly in a hopeless attempt to rise. It rose to its feet, looking nervously at the three pokemon facing it down. It was at a disadvantage for the first time since the thing had ambushed me and it was realizing that.

"Confuse wisp!" I shouted to Luna. Inspiration was striking and like hell I was letting something as rare as a heracross get away from me. I had almost fifteen empty pokeballs in my bag and seriously doubted that the murderous bug was going to burn through them all.

Luna's ball of eerie flame washed against the heracross' carapace. It shrieked in pain as it righted itself, its tattered wings folding back away. It glanced around the clearing, eyes settling on me with murderous intent. I felt it sizing me up, recognize that I was the one directing its opponents.

"Luna, flamethrower."

My vulpix reared back, sucking in a breath. The heracross moved to dodge it, but without its wings it wasn't nearly as fast. The gout of flame took it in the side, forcing another pained screech out of the battered bug.

I raised my good arm, readying the first ball. Luna cut the flames and the heracross stumbled towards me. It was smouldering in half a dozen places and smoke curled lazily off of it. I pitched the pokeball as it groaned wearily. It bounced off the heracross' head and sucked the bug inside in a flash of red. It bounced twice, shaking madly as the heracross fought against capture.

"Be ready for when it breaks out," I said to my team as I readied another ball. I turned to look at Pride. "Shock it with a thunderbolt when it pops out."

Pride nodded, electricity already beginning to spark along his flanks. White-yellow electricity jumped between his spines, racing up to his horn. He held it for a long moment, stray voltage bleeding off while he waited for the heracross.

The bug popped back out, snarling as it attempted to orient itself. The bolt of lightning shot from Pride's horn and impaled the bug on the side. It convulsed as electricity coursed through it, Pride channeling everything he had into his attack.

The bolt ended and I pitched the ball before the heracross toppled over. It disappeared into the ball and I repeated my order to Pride.

The heracross broke out two more times. Pride met it with another thunderbolt each time and I pitched another ball at it each time. On the fourth ball, it finally fell still. The ball came to a halt and stopped shaking in the roots of the tree I had been sleeping in.

I didn't move for a long while. I just sat there staring at the ball. A twinge of pain in my shoulder brought me back to reality.

I crossed the clearing and retrieved the ball. I clipped it onto my belt and groaned in pain as the adrenaline began to fade. My shoulder was dislocated for sure. I'd seen my father do it to himself half a dozen times before and knew exactly what to do.

I unfastened my belt as fast as I could with only one hand. I stuck the belt between my teeth and took the wrist of my dislocated arm with my good hand. I pulled my arm straight forward and bit down on a groan of pain as my arm popped back into the socket with a sickening crunch.

I cradled it close to my body as I steadied my breath. It had hurt, but not as much as I had expected. I'd get it checked out when I reached Celadon. I wasn't overly worried as I'd seen my father do the same thing half a dozen times growing up.

I pulled out a potion, glancing around at my pokemon. They weren't badly hurt for the most part. Pride was limping again, but Luna and Acolyte seemed fine. I emptied the rest of the potion into Pride's side and leaned tossed the empty bottle into my bag.

Pride whined, still limping. I frowned and examined his side again. There were no obvious breaks, but I couldn't rule out a broken rib. I returned him to his ball, determined to give my stubborn nidorino a break even if he didn't want one.

I pulled out my compass and turned myself north. I'd given myself three days to get my ass back onto the road to Celadon. This was the third day. I couldn't afford to arrive on the day of my challenge. My team needed rest. I needed rest.

With a resigned sigh, I flipped the compass shut. The sun was rising and daylight was already burning. I trudged into the forest with Acolyte and Luna close behind.

I broke through the line of trees just after sunset. The lights from Celadon were shining above the trees and the stars seemed to dim slightly in their presence. I had neglected to make camp and set myself on travelling through the night. It was coming up on the sixth day since I had left Vermillion and I was determined to arrive as early as possible.

I retired Acolyte to his ball after he had nearly stumbled into a victreebell nest after lunch. He was showing his fatigue and I couldn't afford an avoidable injury because he was too tired to think.

Luna proved herself yet again. My starter never seemed to tire, keeping a steady pace just ahead of me for damn near the whole time. She never once faltered and I resolved to train myself as hard as I was pushing her.

We crushed the rest of the road to Celadon easily. With the oppressive claustrophobia of the forest left behind, we didn't have to clear a path as we went and could follow the safely paved road. We passed dozens of small service roads that crossed the route, no doubt leading off towards small hamlets like my own home village.

Luna and I rolled up on Celadon's gate before the sun had even started to brighten the sky. It was a warm night, with not a cloud in sight. I was waved through by the night guard and directed towards the pokemon centre a few blocks away from the gate.

I checked into the centre, handing my four pokeballs into the front desk for immediate assistance. They had a few spare rooms so I booked one for the next week and left them my Silph expense card.

With my pokemon being cared for and another full day until my challenge, I finally felt like I could rest. I closed my eyes and let my mind finally drift away.

Pokédex Entry #214 – Heracross

This bug was originally indigenous to Ilex forest, however it has spread across most of The Kan-Jo supercontinent thanks to the many trainers that crisscross the region. It can be found almost anywhere that forests are heavy enough to sustain large-scale flora that heracross feed upon.

It has a large horn on its head with powerful shoulders. The horn varies in shape between males and females of the species. It has thick claws on their hind legs, which it uses to grip onto tree trunks and plant itself for powerful attacks.

Intermediate Trainer KT#07996101, Marcus Wright, current team

Luna, Vulpix

Pride, Nidorino

Acolyte, Marowak

Heracross