-|Christmas RP Event: ChainedReactions|-

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (3x)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???)

Current Battle Stats: Cloyster 85% (used Rock Blast)
Electivire 62% (used Low Kick)

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

As it turned out, my plan didn't work. Kai shot the Thunderbolt at the Cloyster, and it knocked it onto the ice. However, when he jumped onto the ice and ran forwards, attempting to use Low Kick, the Cloyster shot lots and lots of rocks at him, knocking him back onto the shore. It then used some more rocks to smash a hole in the ice below it, returning itself to the water.

Kai was on his knees, panting heavily. I knew these consecutive battles would be getting to him by now.

"Do you want me to swap you out?" I asked him.

He shot me a look, and shook his head. Slowly, he got to his feet.

"Right, the Cloyster's water maneuverability in the water is it's main strength," I said to Kai, "so short range attacks are out. Instead, let's go long-range. Fire a Thunder into the water."

I usually didn't like using Thunder - it was too inaccurate for my tastes. But this time, unlike the Kingler before, Kai wasn't trying to hit a single moving target. He was simply firing all of his electrical power into the water, which in turn would conduct it all the way to the Cloyster. Kai began shedding yellow sparks like a dog sheds water water swimming, and then he lowered his fist towards the water.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (3x)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???)

Current Battle Stats: Cloyster 50% (used Surf)
Electivire 53% (used Thunder)

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

The massive lightning attack surged into the water. I had no idea whether or not it hit the Cloyster, but I thought it was a fairly safe assumption that it did. The lake seemed quiet, and I was just about to walk away when a huge tidal wave suddenly appeared out of the fog. I yelled and scrambled backwards, just barely avoiding being swept away.

Kai wasn't as lucky. He took the full force of the attack, but his weight and determination kept him from being swept into the murky black waters. Just barely though - I could clearly hear Kai panting, and I could just make out the outline of the Cloyster on top of the lake. It was making a repetitive grating sound, which I interpreted as laughter.

I knew Kai was tired, but I was also pretty sure that the Cloyster was too. One last attack should do it.

"Kai, use Quick Attack to get close and finish the Cloyster off with Thundershock!" I yelled. Kai roared, and jumped onto the lake, using his speed to hop nimbly across floating ice patches.

I was a little worried about this strategy - there were more than a few holes in it. The Cloyster could send super-fast shards of ice flying at Kai, but hopefully he could dodge them. Also, if the Cloyster managed to get him into the water, it'd be all over. I just had to place my faith in Kai that he would get the job done.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???)

Current Battle Stats: ???
Electivire 53%

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

Kai jumped high into the air over the Cloyster. He then sent a small trail of sparks, like a fishing line, towards his enemy. When the line touched the Cloyster's purple-ish shell, triple the power poured down the line. The Cloyster keened as Kai landed on the ice, then ran back to solid land. With one final echoing wail, the Cloyster sunk under the water. I waited for a couple minutes, but it seemed to have fled.

I looked over at Kai. He was panting heavily, and there was so much sweat on his fur that it was beginning to freeze. I decided he could do with a rest. I returned him to his Pokeball and brought out my Starmie, Flash. Flash wasn't usually one of my first choices as a Pokemon, simply because Starmie were very mysterious and different to other types of Pokemon. Despite this, I couldn't ignore their magnificent strength and diverse movepool. Furthermore, Flash was great at ranged attacks, so if another aquatic Pokemon appeared it'd be easier to battle it.

I walked through the snowstorm, scratching at the facewarmer. Something glinted underneath the snow - it was another vacpac of milk and cookies. I hardly registered it - I was so used to these things by now it wasn't even noteworthy.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???)

Current Battle Stats: Marshtomp 1oo%
Electivire 53%

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

Not long after I had found the fifth vacpac of Milk and Cookies, I heard the unmistakeable call of a Marshtomp. Before I could do anything, however, the Marshtomp itself bounded through the fog, and upon seeing us growled a challenge.

I wasn't too happy with this turn of events. While Flash could probably take the Marshtomp, it didn't have any supereffective attacks, and the Marshtomp might be able to pull off some nasty tricks I couldn't prepare for. My best option was to go for the super-effective attack. I pulled out two Poke Balls, one in each hand. The one in my right opened and Flash returned in a flash of white light. At the same time, the one in my left dropped to the ground, and a flash of red light revealed Dual.

"Hey buddy, up to a bit of battling?" I asked him.

<You know it,> he replied through our mental link. He took a quick look at the Marshtomp opposite us and settled into his fighting pose, which exposed his elbows so he could deal maximum damage to his enemies.

"Alright Dual, shake out those muscles and Bulk yourself Up," I said to him. "We'll worry about attacking in a little bit - I want you to be able to handle the Marshtomp's physical attacks. If it tries anything, use Protect to ride it out."

Gallade, as a species, could handle long-range attacks magnificently. It was one of the reasons they were known as expert duelist Pokemon. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, their hand-to-hand defences weren't great. By stretching and relaxing his muscles, not only would Dual be able to hit harder, he'd be able to withstand a lot more physical punishment.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???)

Current Battle Stats: Marshtomp 1oo% Use Curse
Gallede 1oo% - Used Bulk Up

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

As Dual stretched out his muscles, I noted that the Marshtomp was doing the same thing. It was stretching its muscles and filling the air with low-key murmuring as it was doing so. Seeing as I owned a Swampert, I knew exactly what it was doing. It was using Curse, a move that lowers the user's Speed but increases its physical abilities. That was fine with me - Dual wasn't particularly fast, no any help there was great.

"Alright, Dual, let's do this, but keep it simple at the same time. Go and hit it with a nice hard Leaf Blade. If it tries to attack you with anything you might not be able to handle, use Shadow Sneak to get out of there."

Dual nodded. It was a good plan. Leaf Blade was Dual's second strongest blade-based attack, and it would be VERY effective against the Water/Ground Marshtomp. Furthermore, the backup plan of Shadow Sneak worked to Dual's strengths. It was one of his favourite moves. If the Marshtomp tried anything funny, Dual would simply sink into his shadow and retreat. Dual began running towards the Marshtomp, and as he did so his elbow-blades started to glow a stunning green.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???)

Current Battle Stats: Marshtomp 57% Att/Def Spd - Used Blizzard
Gallede 86% - Att/Def1 Used Leaf Blade

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

As Dual approached the Marshtomp, his glowing green blades extended, and just before he reached the Marshtomp he swung both his arms up, trying for an X-shaped cut on the mud fish Pokemon. Unfortunately, the Marshtomp ducked, and only one of the blades landed. Furthermore, before Dual could retreat using Shadow Sneak, the Marshtomp nailed him with a full-powered Blizzard attack. Not for the first time this night, I cursed the raging snowstorm. There was so much sleet and ice around that the usually unwieldy attack was almost guaranteed a hit.

Dual took it like a man, though. The torrent of ice and snow pushed him backwards, but not off his feet. Slowly, the ice and snow came to a stop. There was now a large hill of snow in between Dual and his opponent. I grinned. This could work out perfectly.

"Dual, use Magical Leaf of the Marshtomp, then get in close with a Close Combat while it's distracted."

Dual nodded, and he held one of his hands out in front of him. As he did so, six large maple-leaf-shaped objects appeared in his hand, overlapping slightly. When they were fully formed, they started glowing all colours of the rainbow. Dual reached for the Marshtomp mentally, and then threw the leaves shuriken style towards the hill.

The six leaves spun like discus. When they reached the foot of the hill, though, they buzzed over, avoiding crashing into the snow. As soon as they left Dual's sight he began pounding up the hill. Hopefully by now the Marshtomp would be either hurt and distracted by the unexpected attack, or it would be too busy dodging them to notice Dual. When he reached the top of the hill, he jumped high into the air, obviously planning to drop onto his enemy from above. It certainly was a good idea - no one ever expected a swordsman to suddenly fall out of the sky, and Dual was more than a swordsman. He's be using his blades, sure, but he'd also rain punches and kicks at the Marshtomp, and sometimes I'd even seen him finish up with a solid headbutt. I began running around the huge snow pile to see the result of my plan.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x), Snow Star Crystal (x2)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???), Marshtomp(???)

Current Battle Stats: N/A
Gallede 86% -

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

When I finally rounded the newly-created hillock, I saw Dual deliver a devastating uppercut to the Marshtomp. It was actually knocked into the air, and when it landed it quickly fled from the powerhouse that was my Gallade. The only problem was that Gallade would have over-taxed his muscles during the assault, but he was superbly conditioned and he should return to normal within a couple minutes, specially considering he wasn't actively fighting.

"Good job, mate," I called out to him. He nodded acknowledgment, and I was just about to return him to his Ball when I thought better of it. Gallade could probably take any non-flying, non-Ghost Pokemon, and there weren't very many of them in the Great Lakes. He could stay out for now - I should really keep Flash in reserve in case I needed to use it against a physical wall sometime down the track. Dual walked over to me, and then we moved on into the snowstorm. I was beginning to believe that there were no trapped Trainers in the Great Lakes whatsoever. After all, the land was mostly flat, so they would have been able to get out quickly.

Unseen by me, two small crystals of ice fell into a small elastic pocket on my pack. I didn't know it yet, but they would serve an important purpose down the line.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x), Snow Star Crystal (x2)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???), Marshtomp(???)

Current Battle Stats: Toxicroak 1oo% (using Sludge Bomb)
Gallede 86%

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

Not long after Gallade's muscles had relaxed again, I heard a strange croaking sound. The snowstorm had died down a bit, but we were in one of the Lakes' few woods, so visibility was crap anyway. Suddenly, a full-grown Toxicroak jumped out from behind a tree and threw a goopy purple Sludge Bomb straight at Dual. The world slowed down as my mind began working on the facts, trying to decide what to do.

Internally, I grinned. This was a great match-up for Dual. The Toxicroak was quadruply weak to Dual's Psychic attacks, all of which he was extremely competent with. Hopefully, this battle wouldn't take too long, but then again, Toxicroak have a reputation for being dirty and underhanded fighters.

"Quick Dual, use Protect!" I cried. "Once the Sludge Bomb is gone, use Psychic: Shockwave Style!"

Dual fist-pounded the ground, and the second his fist hit the ground a silvery sheen covered him completely. Hopefully it would ward off the dangerous attack. I couldn't think of something much worse than Dual being poisoned out here. On the upside, Dual would be retaliating with Shockwave Style. It was one of the most powerful moves he knew as a Ralts: instead of using his telekinetic abilities to attack using the environment like a normal Psychic attack, he'd create an invisible sphere and then stir up the air inside to near-typhoon speeds. Once it was ready, he could crack open the shell and the air would blast out towards the enemy like a shockwave. It often backfired when he was a Ralts, but he managed to gain control of it when he was a Kirlia, and these days it was the most powerful long-range move in his arsenal, not to mention the only one he enjoyed using. I didn't really want him getting close to the Toxicroak - he could get a poisoned or Sucker Punched or something.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x), Snow Star Crystal (x2)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???), Marshtomp(???)

Current Battle Stats: Toxicroak 73% (used Swagger)
Gallede 75% (Used Protect, Psychic) Con Att2

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

Dual managed to ward off the Sludge Bomb with his Protect, and the Shockwave Style took less than ten seconds to charge. When he was a Ralts, a good sized shockwave took upwards of half a minute to prepare, but it wasn't a chore now. The shockwave blasted from it's invisible cage, taking on a light blue colour because of the ice and Dual's psychic powers. The Toxicroak was blasted off of it's feet, and into a tree.

"Great job, Dual!" I called out, and he touched me gratefully through our mind link.

The Toxicroak pulled itself out of the tree. I knew that Dual wouldn't have scared it off with only one Shockwave - despite being great with the move, his Special Attack wasn't great. However, instead of attacking back, the Toxicroak took some time to swagger around and insult Dual with Pokemon language. Being linked with Dual, I could understand about a twelth of what was being said, and it was nasty stuff. Dual got angry, so angry he could barely contain himself. I swore underneath my breath - if Dual didn't concentrate, he could slip up and hurt himself,and leave himself wide open for a retaliatory strike. I considered returning him to his Ball, but I couldn't disrespect him like that, not after the Toxicroak insulted him. He's never forgive me. Besides, he had healing options and support moves if he needed them, and he was so pissed off that he could probably finish this in one last attack.

"Okay, Dual, listen to me," I said to him calmly. I noticed his muscles were pulsing and the only reason he hadn't shot off already was because I was holding him back through our mental link. "I want you to keep this simple. Finish it with a Psycho Cut, and nothing fancy."

The second I finished speaking, he shot off towards the frog-like Pokemon. I only hoped that he wasn't so enraged that he slipped up, although if half of those insults were what I thought they were, I wouldn't blame him if he did. Both of his elbow blades glowed purple, and instead of increasing in length like normal, they grew incredibly wide, aiming for maximum accuracy as opposed to damage. I was glad to see that somewhere in the back of his mind Dual was thinking at least semi-retionally - if that Psycho Cut connected, there was no chance of the Toxicroak hanging around at all.

 

Chosen Route: Route Uno

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Conquered Areas: N/A

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Current Area: The Great Lake

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Trainer’s Items: 5x Full Heal; 2x Max Potion; 10x PokeDoll; 5x Honey; Black Aura Reader; Squirtbottle; Pokeplayer; Digital Camera; Status Bomb; 4x Super Potions; Santa's Beard, Santa's Present, Rudolf the Reindeer Doll, Santa's Charm Locket, Milk and Cookies (5x), Snow Star Crystal (x2)

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Trainer’s Money: 2555o

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Pokémon Encountered: Poliwag (???), Kingler (???), Cloyster(???), Marshtomp(???)

Current Battle Stats: Toxicroak 46% (Used Poison Jab)
Gallede 60% Con Att2 (Used Psycho Cut)

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Pokémon Stats:
Jolly Gallade(M) 1oo%
Serious Electivire(M) 1oo%
Sassy Dusknoir(F) 1oo%
Docile Starmie(G) 1oo%​

 

Dual smashed the thick swords into the Toxicroak repeatedly, but the Fighting frog Pokemon was powerful, too. It covered its hands with some kind of glowing purple aura and used them in close combat with Dual. Both sides scored some light hits, and then a particularly vicious sweep of Dual's left blade was blocked by both hands of the Toxicroak. The Toxicroak heaved with all its might, shoving Dual backwards. He slid through the snow towards me, but he didn't lose his footing. He was about to run back towards the Toxicroak, but I stopped him through our mind link.

I was worried about the condition Dual was in. He was angry, and confused, and liable to hurt himself, but at the same time I couldn't withdraw him. I'd been lucky so far, but I couldn't count on luck forever. I had a feeling that the Toxicroak would flee soon - after all, every other Pokemon today had after I'd smacked it around a bit, and the Toxicroak was panting heavily. No, what I needed was a nice simple attack that Dual could pull off easily without too much concentration. And I knew the perfect attack.

"Dual, I want you to use Confusion. Snap off a tree branch and throw it at the Toxicroak," I said quietly to him. Confusion was the very first attack he had ever learned, and by now telekinesis was as second-nature to him as typing on a computer was to me.

I could feel Dual's internal conflict. One part of him wanted to continue beating up his opponent hand-to-hand, like a man does. The other half wanted to obey my orders, agreeing with my logic. His blades began to glow purple, but then the purple glow disappeared and was replaced by a blue glow around his forehead. I took this as a sign he was about to obey me, but then the purple glow started up again. There was nothing I could do but watch and hope that either way, the battle would be over soon.