It was a bit eerie going to bed in a tent within a dark forest, the only light present from a small camp fire. Thankfully, there was no reason to be scared when Pidgey, Rattata and Chansey all happily stayed outside their pokeballs and slept within the tent with me.

The alarm on my phone woke me up bright and early the next morning and I was up in moments, eager to get started again. It was a lot like when I played a new video game I'd been waiting for, for a long time, only enhanced by a magnitude that couldn't be counted on one hand, I made sure to get some sleep, but the excitement inevitably had me up early and nearly bouncing with energy.

A quick breakfast which was done and dusted within half an hour led to some early morning training. Steel Wing and Iron Tail were coming along really nicely, all I needed to do was leave them to it to practice with. Instead, I wanted to move onto phase two of my plan to deal with Brock.

To that degree, after me and my pokemon exercised a bit under Chansey's Gravity attack to get the blood flowing and got healed up by Heal Pulse once again, we moved on to the main course. Having Poliwhirl teach everyone how to use Rain Dance. Made doubly easy thanks to Rattata's Mimic.

It was a bit hectic really, and I could have done without getting so wet. Thank fuck I was just dressed in a pair of shorts that I slept in, a pair of comfy swimming trunks I'd bought yesterday.

We went at it for about an hour, the pokemon training while I packed up most of my camping equipment. Rattata, thanks to using Mimic over and over, got the hang of it pretty quickly, in a mere half an hour, and then went on to Mimic Poliwhirl's Water Gun on my orders and start with that. He did manage to get it down as well, probably because he now had a familiarity with a water attack, but sadly the only other pokemon on my team that managed to get Rain Dance down a bit at all was Pidgey.

Not that I was really complaining mind you, the progress was fucking amazing.

"Well, good hustle lads," I said, gaining the attention of all my pokemon, each in different stages of being haggard, well except Poliwhirl, he always looked fresh it seemed, before nodding to Chansey, "And lady." I added. Pidgey snorted.

"It's about time we get a move on, we can stop later on and continue then," I said to the assembled pokemon, "At the rate you're all going, you should have those attacks down pat by tonight or tomorrow morning eas-

"Ho there travelerl!" I was interrupted before I could finish. "How do you do! That is quite the collection of pokemon you have there."

I noted Chansey and Rattata looking curiously at the interrupter, Poliwhirl didn't even blink and just continued to look at me. But Pidgey, Spearow and Beedrill all tensed up and I could see the familiar stirrings of anger forming in them. I knew from experience in the last few days what they looked like when angry after all.

Before they could attack whoever was behind me, I turned around to face them myself and almost fell on my ass in shock when I caught sight of a stocky older boy dressed in Japanese-esque armour, a katana sheathed at his hip and a large net sheathed on his back.

"I am looking for Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town," Samurai, fucking Samurai continued, meeting my eyes, "Do you be he?"

How the fuck did this guy ever learn about Ash actually even in canon? Did Gary tell him or something? I know Gary did battle him since Gary started with Squirtle and Samurai's flashback showed him getting his ass kicked by Charmander, Bulbasaur and Squirtle in three separate battles.

"No, my name's Jord Odhar, from Viridian City," I replied with a shrug, "Ash shouldn't be too far though."

"Alas, it seems my quest continues." Samurai nodded dramatically.

Yet instead of leaving, he just stood there and stared into my eyes. "..Do you need something from me?" I asked after a few moments of weird silence.

"Indeed, you may not be Ash Ketchum, but you seem to have a fine collection of pokemon," the sword wielder replied. In one motion he drew the sword from his hip and pointed it at me. My pokemon made a ruckus behind me, Pidgey's snarling squawk of anger standing out the most, but I held my hand out backwards to stop them from doing anything, yet. "Jord Odhar of Viridian City, I the Samurai of Viridian forest challenge you to a battle."

My heart began to beat rapidly as my veins coursed with excitement for the who knows how many times in the past three days. I do need to get some experience battling. "Fine," I agreed, though I didn't want to hang around to long with him regardless of battling him, I need to get to Pewter before Ash runs off with Brock, a lot of my plans hinge on the prize money I can win from him, "I agree, but only a one on one."

"Excellent!" Samurai grinned, reaching into his armour and pulling out a pokeball. He pressed the button on it and released the pokemon from within, "I choose my partner Pinsir! Choose whatever pokemon you desire to face him!"

As he finished, his pokemon solidified into form, the familiar blinding white light receding. "Pinsa!" the massive brown stag beetle roared and I had to stop myself from taking a step back in fright. Only the thought that my pokemon may lose respect for me stopped me from backing down.

But Jesus fuck was it massive. Taller than me, and those pincers on its head, they were more than half the length of my body, and easily as wide as my torso! Sure I have the body of a twelve year old, but fucking still.

I looked over my shoulder at my pokemon, and besides Chansey all of them looked eager to get in there and have a round with the massive brown beetle pokemon. Pidgey and Spearow had already had a few battles by this point, so going down the list: "Poliwhirl, you want to take this?" I asked.

The water types eyes positively lit up, "Poli!" he nodded eagerly, bouncing forward happily and standing in front of me.

The rest of my battle hungry squad practically deflated, "Sorry guys, next time." I apologised before turning around to look at Samurai, "You ready then?"

"Yes I am!" the sword wielding boy bellowed, pointing his sword forward, "Go Pinsir! Use your Vicegrip attack!"

Pinsir snapped its mandibles and with a roar sprinted forward towards Poliwhirl, lowering its head as it charged, the horns on its head beginning to glow bright white.

It was a daunting sight, but I clenched my fist and shook off any fear, "Uppercut!" I shouted.

"Poli!" Poliwhirl nodded and bounded forward off of the tip of his toes in a blur of speed to meet Pinsir. Compared to his clumsy movements when I captured him, there was a massive difference. Pokemon really did learn things at an incredible rate, the basic boxing and kick boxing stances I'd passed on to him had been retained and mastered in the span of a single night.

The speed he'd gained just from the training under Gravity last night, while not mind boggling, is quite something as well. In a split few moments, Poliwhirl met Pinsir in the middle of its charge and ducked just slightly to avoid when its pincers lashed out in an attempt to ensnare him.

Poliwhirl's gloved hands shimmered with a familiar orange energy and off balance as Pinsir was with its method of attack, it had no chance to defend as Poliwhirl surged forward and lay a thunderous uppercut into its face that whipped a blast of air in every direction from the force of the blow and lifted the huge bug type bodily of the ground and into the air a few feet.

Pinsir screeched in pain and the glow faded from its pincers. But Poliwhirl wasn't done, without even another command from me he stepped into his punch and lashed out, grabbing Pinsir by one of the arms and spinning. The ground shook when Poliwhirl bodily dragged the bug type over his shoulder and slammed it face first into the dirt.

"Hypnosis." I ordered after a moment.

Poliwhirl obeyed readily, lifting his gloved hands a red aura appeared around his body before sinking into Pinsir, the bug type immediately going limp as it was put to sleep.

"Pinsir no!" Samurai shouted, "Wake up!"

Well, that wasn't too hard at all.

Poliwhirl stood up, dusting off his gloved hands and I couldn't help but smirk. That was way easier than I was expecting. "I think that's it," I said to the boy, walking over to him, "Pinsir's down and Poliwhirl could just smash your pokemon about with a bunch of Mega Punches without it able to do anything about it."

Samurai growled, his hand clenching around his blade before he sighed and sheathed it, "Very well, I know when I am beaten," he conceded, reaching up with Pinsir's pokeball and returning the pokemon, "..You are something else, not even the three trainers of Pallet Town I have battled so far were able to bring down Pinsir so handily."

That's because I'm using an already evolved pokemon that has been trained under intense gravity and then healed, then repeated for maximum physical conditioning. Sure it had only been a day, but pokemon adapted and grew fast under stress. And what's more stressful on the body than training under high gravity?

The winnings I earned from Samurai weren't all that great to be honest. A mere three hundred pokedollars, but I suppose it was much better than nothing considering that the battle took such a short amount of time.

It wasn't long after Samurai slinked off to fix up his Pinsir that I packed up camp fully and continued on my way through the forest. I kept Pidgey, Spearow and Rattata outside their balls to let them continue their training while I travelled.

Pidgey and Spearow were my definite go to's for Brock's gym and Rattata made for a light companion on my shoulder to keep me company and ward off any of the trepidation I felt travelling through a forest filled with super powered mystical animals.

He might have only spent a few hours in total training with me, but most of that was spent under intense gravity pressure and being healed, so even just since we left the Viridian Pokemon Centre, the little rat has grown in leaps and bounds, and I've noticed a definite size increase in him. Before he was just about as long as my wrist to the tips of my fingers, not counting his tail, but he'd gained a good inch or so since I caught him.

Spearow himself was definitely trying hard. His pride had been smarted with the fact that Pidgey already had Steel Wing down and almost had Rain Dance down as well, and Rattata had Rain Dance and Water Gun down and was making good progress on Iron Tail. Spearow in contrast while having made some progress with both, hadn't gotten the hang of either yet. And it definitely bothered him.

We continued on for a good few hours of walking, right up until passed twelve before we stopped for lunch and to get some extra group training in. Plus, my feet were hurting like hell. I was getting way more used to these long treks and my body was beginning to get conditioned at a rapid pace, but it was still a pain in the ass to get used to even with Chansey's help.

I sat on my backpack after we ate and watched my pokemon go at it. Chansey at my side held her hands out, the familiar black power of gravity shimmering around her paws. The air in front of us shimmered with increased density and weight, and within the confines of the shimmering air, five of my pokemon sparred.

Rattata shot forward Quick Attack boosting his speed rapidly even under the weight now that he was much more used to it and jumped into the air, flipping over his head and flinging his tail out, a shimmer of silver energy surrounding it.

"Poli!" Poliwhirl grunted, throwing his arms up into a cross block and guarding against the Iron Tail attack. The force of the blow had Poliwhirls feet sinking into the grass but his impressive musculature held strong and with a jerk of his arms he thrust up and threw Rattata into the air.

Then with a hip thrust, he fired a large jet of water from his stomach at the airborne normal type. Rattata gave a shout and swung with his tail to pull him back around to face down at Poliwhirl and his attack before cocking his small head and spitting a similar, albeit smaller lance of water from his own mouth.

Both Water Gun attacks slammed into each other in a spray of moisture that rained down atop the grass.

But my attention was then captured by Spearow giving a piercing cry and speeding forward with his beak glowing. He slammed into Beedrill's stomach like a bullet pushing the larger bug pokemon through the air, but a familiar shimmer of golden light around Beedrill caught my eye as the momentum pushing him back slowed to a crawl. Then with his body still glowing gold, Beedrill lifted one of his lanced arms and smashed it into Spearows back flinging the small red winged bird down towards the ground.

Beedrill had no time to rest though, as Pidgey dived down from above like a speeding rocket, wings glowing white. Pidgey showed his superior strength to Spearow as his Wing Attack struck home and tore Beedrill from the air, slamming the bug and poison type right into the ground alongside Spearow. Though the force behind Pidgey's blow had the bee pokemon bouncing off of the ground, skipping across the grass like a thrown pebble across the surface of a lake.

Beedrill was hit so far he came to a stop just beside me and Chansey, right outside the shimmering field of gravitational pressure. Pidgey barked proudly and shot down towards Rattata and Poliwhirl, intent on taking them down as well.

Before he could though, a small red and brown blur smashed into him and pushed him back higher into the air, both of them breaking apart a moment later to reveal it was Spearow just as his wings erupted with silver energy and lashed out at Pidgey. Pidgey copied him, using his own Steel Wing and the two small birds began to have a serious try hard duel right in the middle of the air, slashing and clashing wings rapidly against each other.

Beedrill at my feet buzzed angrily, pushing himself back up and about to fire himself back into the fray before I reached out and touched my palm to his shoulder. "Bzz?" he turned to look at me curiously with big red gem like eyes.

"Hey buddy, do any strong pokemon live up there?" I asked and then nodded my head towards a large towering tree a few hundred feet away that stood out like a sore thumb from where I am in the forest. I'd seen quite a few of them in the distance, but this was the first point I've gotten so close to one. Generally you'd expect some pokemon to have taken such a place as their living space.

Beedrill followed where I was looking and stared at it for a few moments before turning back to me and nodding his head once. "All right then," I grinned, and stood up, "All right guys, let's call it for now!" I shouted.

Immediately Chansey let the gravity fade away and she sat down to catch her breath for a bit while the rest of my pokemon all returned to huddle around me within a few moments. "Lookin' good lads," I praised them, "I'd have been glad to let you go on for a little while longer if Beedrill didn't let me in on a little tidbit of interesting information."

Spearow perked right up in interest, while Pidgey just looked bored. Rattata listened eagerly while Poliwhirl just stared at me unblinkingly. I pointed up at the massive towering tree, drawing their attention towards it, ""According to Beedrill there's a tough pokemon living in that tree," I explained and couldn't help but lift my fist up in excitement, "Let's go take it down and catch it!"

While Rattata and Chansey didn't react with much at the news, the other four practically began to vibrate with excitement. Spearow and Beedrill were easy to notice and Pidgey lost his bored look, but the way Poliwhir's eyes narrowed and gleamed as he pumped a gloved fist into the air told me all I needed to know there.

He really only got excited for training and fighting. He's definite Poliwrath material if there ever was one.

I turned to Chansey, noting that her deep breathing had lessened somewhat, "Hey girl, can you heal them up?"I asked, "After you do, you can take a nice long rest in your pokeball."

She nodded pushing herself up and beamed affectionately at me, "Chansey chans!" she said, raising her hands up and conjuring the ever familiar aura of pink healing light from her paws.

Man Chansey is such a great pokemon. I need to make a note to spend more time with her when we hit Pewter City. I mean, she's constantly in my company when out of her ball, but she's mostly just helping a lot and healing us all after we exercise ourselves into the dirt. I should try and find out what she likes to do outside of being helpful once we get out of this forest and I earn some money from taking down Brock.

I approached the massive tree at a steady pace. The only pokemon I kept out for now was Pidgey just in case anything jumped out at me, plus his Steel Wing was great for hacking my way through foliage that got in my way.

I let loose a whistle when I finally made it into the area the towering tree was located in and craned my head up and up to get a good look at it. It was something else alright. The tree base had to be easy thiry feet wide, possibly more.

I looked up over the tree, taking in the branches and any space in sight, but I couldn't see any pokemon around. "Give it a wake up will you?" I asked the bird on my shoulder, "Use your Gust."

The small bird barked and nodded before jumping off my shoulder and beating his small wings rapidly conjuring a large squall of wind that sliced through the air and battered the tree top, tearing hundreds of leaves from it and leaving them to get swept up into the harsh winds.

Pidgey kept up the attack for a few moments before a loud, deep bellow roared through the air. Suddenly, a massive, more compact cyclone of wind tore through Pidgey's gust, shooting out of the tree tops and tearing down towards us.

"Pidg!" Pidgey barked aggressively and stopped his Gust, wings glowing silver with Steel Wing just as the cyclone reached him. He threw his wings out in front of himself and outright caught the cyclone, blocking it!

And to my horror, Pidgey was being pushed back! Rapidly! Shit! Shit! Shit! I reached for my belt and was just about to grab one of my other pokemon's pokeballs and send them out to help, when Pidgey gave a massive squawk and erupted into bright blinding light.

"No fucking way! Already!?" I gaped in shock as Pidgey's form blurred out by light began to grow rapidly, expanding to more than three times his usual height, and he was already quite big, his tail feathers blossoming out and a crest of feathers growing out of his head.

My first pokemon released a piercing shriek, "Geeotto!" and the light disappeared around him, except for his still silver glowing wings. Not content to block anymore, with his now much larger wings, the newly evolved Pidgeotto slashed out with both of his wings and smashed the cyclone of wind back to where it came from.

A shadowy blur jumped out of the way and the attack smashed into the tree, tearing a massive hole in the bark. The blur landed on one of the open branches, and I finally got a good look at what I was dealing with.

Humanoid, with a brown barch like body and a massive long white mane of hair. It was a Shiftry! "The hell is a Shiftry doing here?" I couldn't help but wonder.

"Shiift!" it growled angrily, gesturing down at us with a leafy hand.

I'm not sure what it means, but I may as well be up fucking front. "Shiftry!" I shouted, drawing its attention, looking up into its narrowed yellow eyes. I reached into my pocket and grabbed an empty pokeball and held it up for it to see, all the while maintaining eye contact, "I've come to challenge you and capture you, do you accept!?"

Its lips drew up and it growled but it dipped its head in acknowledgement, "Let's go Pidgeotto, let's smash its face in!" I grinned. "Quick attack and Wing Attack!"

Pidgeotto shrieked loudly and shot into the air, propelled so fast by a sudden blur of white light exploding from his tail feathers I could barely keep track of him with my eyes. He was on Shiftry in a split few moments, swinging out with his wing.

The attack tore right through the branch Shiftry was standing on, but the grass and dark type wasn't there, it bounced to the middle of the tree and kicked off of it launching itself at Pidgeotto, the leaves on its hands erupting into green light and lengthening into blade like shapes.

Pidgeotto couldn't turn fast enough to counter attack but before the attack slashed into him, my pokemon beat his wings, conjuring a squall that pushed him back, just in time for Shiftry's slash to meet nothing but air.

Pidgeotto lashed out again with Wing Attack slamming it into Shiftry's side, but Shiftry's foot exploded into cyan blue light at the same exact moment it lashed out with a mule kick and caught Pidgeotto in the chest.

They both gave shouts of pain as they fell from the air, spiralling downwards at a rapid pace. Dark light shimmered into existence around Shiftry's hands and my eyes widened as I recognised it from the anime. Dark Pulse!

"Sand Attack!" I shouted the first thing that came to mind.

Shiftry pulled out of its descent and turned, cupping its hands like it was about to fire a kamehameha wave but just as it did, Pidgeotto lashed out with a wing, and a spray of sand appeared from it and washed over Shiftry's face.

The tengu like pokemon roared in pain, its hands going to clutch scrub at its eyes, completely forgetting about the power it had conjured. The Dark Pulse exploded in its face the moment it pulled its hands apart and the extra force behind it slammed it down into the ground with no chance of recovering while Pidgeotto beat his wings and levelled out, flying above the downed dual type pokemon.

"Finish it off with Gust!" I shouted up to Pidgeotto.

My starter turned to me and nodded before turning back to the downed grass and dark type beginning to push itself up shakily from its harsh landing after just a few moments.

It didn't get the chance as Pidgeotto began to beat his wings rapidly and summoned a massive squall of wind that put anything he could bring up as a Pidgey to shame.

The flying type attack slammed into Shiftry's back and ploughed the part grass type into the ground. It groaned in pain and the ground beneath it began to buckle under the gale force winds battering it into the ground.

I had to anchor myself down hard, and even with a backpack weighing over two hundred pounds and my own body weight I very nearly got launched into the air by the Gust attack, and I was way out of the way of the epicentre of it.

'Jesus fuck!' I grimaced, hands clenching so tightly into the straps of my backpack it felt like they were going to start bleeding. Pdigeotto did not stop. He kept up beating his wings slamming gale force squall after gale force squall into Shiftry's back, and only after a good thirty seconds when it fell limp under the super effective onslaught did Pidgeotto stop.

"Thank fuck for that." I sighed in relief, looking at the devastation brought about by my pokemon. And it wasn't a small piece. Shiftry lay limp in a crater as deep as its body, and all the grass and been torn from the ground for a good fifteen feet in diameter.

Pidgeotto landed on the ground beside me, chest puffed out proudly despite the large, ugly blue bruise I could see through his feathers there. But just as I was about to congratulate him on his win and evolving, he closed his eyes and an orb of cyan green energy swelled into life around him. The bruising I could see through his feathers began to recede before my very eyes.

I blinked, "Is that Roost?" I wondered aloud. I know pokemon generally learn attacks half the time when they evolve in the anime world and a lot of the time in the game as well, but I wasn't expecting a move like Roost.

Pidgeotto let the orb dissipate after a few moments and opened his eyes, giving a quick bark and nodding his head at my words, confirming what I said.

"You really are such a try hard mate." I couldn't help but shake my head and chuckle.

Pidgeotto just preened smugly. "Alright, alright," I conceded, lifting my hand and patting him on his newly grown pink crest of feathers atop his head, "You're amazing, but I already knew that right?" I had to marvel at his size now. Before, he barely reached halfway to my knee cap, now he was level with my shoulder!

"Pidgot!" he nodded, but it didn't stop him from butting his head into my palm. We stayed like that for a few moments before Pidgeotto pulled back and pointed at the downed form of Shiftry, "Pija!" cried the bird, narrowing his eyes and jerking his head at the defeated pokemon.

"Oh right!" I almost forgot. Walking over to Shiftry, I touched the empty pokeball I had in my hand to its downed form, and it clicked open, sucking the pokemon inside and clicking shut, before glowing red and beginning to shake from side to side in my hand.

It shook a good eight times before slowing to a halt, letting loose a click of success. I grinned happily even as the ball was teleported out of my grasp and back to the Viridian Pokemon Centre.

"Now how about we try and get to Pewter tonight?" I mused, turning back to Pidgeotto.

The large human sized bird cocked his head to the side before a grin seemed to split his beak. "What?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow at him, "What's with that shit eating grin?"

Pidgeotto didn't answer, instead he flapped his wings and flew over to me. And before I could even wonder what he wanted, his talons dug into my heavy backpack and then the newly evolved bird pokemon bodily lifted me and it up into the air with ease. Lifting over three hundred pounds like it was nothing.

...I would have ordered him to put me down, if I didn't lock up in fright like a little bitch. Being scared of heights can be such a pain in the ass sometimes.