Croagunk disappeared.
Not literally.
Adrian’s eyes simply hadn’t adjusted to the difference.
One moment the Poison-type was crouched beside the tree.
The next, it shot across the clearing so quickly that even Venomoth hesitated.
“Croagunk, close in!”
Venomoth’s wings beat hard.
A violent Gust tore through the clearing, bending grass and scattering leaves.
Croagunk changed direction before the attack reached it, springing sideways with enough force to cover several meters.
The wind caught only the edge of its body.
Croagunk landed.
Cleanly.
Adrian felt a surge of satisfaction.
The weights hadn’t magically transformed Croagunk into something untouchable.
Venomoth was still a Low Beginner-rank Pokémon against their level-seven Baby.
But the difference between Croagunk yesterday and Croagunk now was obvious.
“Poison Sting!”
Croagunk fired while moving.
Venomoth climbed.
The first needles missed; the second group forced it sideways.
Adrian watched carefully.
Against Beedrill, they’d wasted attacks trying to hit an aerial opponent directly.
They weren’t repeating that mistake.
“Keep firing.
Don’t chase!”
Croagunk understood.
Another Poison Sting cut across Venomoth’s path.
Then another.
None landed.
They didn’t need to.
Venomoth was being forced higher and farther from Mira.
“Adrian!”
He glanced back.
The researcher had recovered the dropped container and sealed it.
Five Venonat remained between her and the route.
“We need to move!”
“I know.”
Venomoth suddenly stopped retreating.
Its compound eyes glowed.
Adrian’s system had already shown him what was coming.
“Psybeam!
Break right!”
A multicolored beam tore downward.
Croagunk moved.
The attack struck the earth and blasted apart a patch of soil.
Croagunk didn’t stop.
It accelerated toward the nearest tree.
Adrian saw the opportunity at the same moment.
“Up!”
Croagunk jumped onto an exposed root, then the trunk.
For a fraction of a second, it was almost running vertically.
It kicked away.
Venomoth turned.
Too late.
“Fake Out!”
Croagunk’s palm struck Venomoth in midair.
The Bug-type was knocked sideways.
“Cross Chop!”
Adrian didn’t need to specify power.
Not against something stronger.
Croagunk twisted in the air and brought both crossed arms down.
Venomoth reacted.
Its wings surged.
A point-blank Gust exploded between them, and Croagunk was thrown backward before Cross Chop could connect properly.
It hit the ground hard and rolled.
Venomoth was sent in the opposite direction but recovered in the air.
“Croagunk!”
The Poison-type pushed itself upright.
Adrian scanned it quickly.
Status: Lightly Injured
Still good.
Venomoth wasn’t finished either.
But Adrian had learned what he needed.
The speed difference was manageable without the weights.
The power difference wasn’t.
A prolonged fight favored Venomoth.
And they had five Venonat to worry about.
This wasn’t a battle they needed to win.
It was an escort mission.
“Mira!
We’re leaving!”
“Excellent plan!”
She was already moving.
Adrian pointed toward the Venonat blocking their path.
“Clear us a route!
Mud-Slap!”
Croagunk attacked the ground while advancing.
Dirt and debris sprayed across the clustered Venonat.
Two scattered.
A third tried to hold its ground.
“Fake Out!”
Croagunk burst forward.
The Venonat barely had time to react before Croagunk struck it and continued past.
“Go!”
Mira ran through the opening.
Adrian followed.
Croagunk remained behind them.
Venomoth buzzed overhead.
“Supersonic!”
Adrian heard the piercing sound.
His stomach twisted.
“Croagunk, ears!”
Too late.
The sound struck.
Croagunk stumbled, its movements uneven.
“Croa…” It shook its head.
Venomoth descended.
“Confusion!”
Croagunk’s body lifted several inches from the ground.
Adrian stopped running.
Damn it.
“Adrian!”
“Keep going!”
“I’m not leaving…”
“You’re the mission!
Move!”
Mira hesitated, then obeyed.
Adrian turned back.
Venomoth’s eyes glowed brighter.
Croagunk rose higher, struggling, but there was nothing beneath its feet to push against.
Adrian’s mind raced.
Psychic attacks.
A terrible matchup.
He needed to break Venomoth’s concentration.
“Poison Sting!”
Croagunk tried.
Its body twisted awkwardly in the air, and the needles flew wide.
Venomoth’s Confusion strengthened.
Croagunk slammed sideways into a tree.
The psychic hold vanished.
Croagunk dropped.
Adrian winced.
That hurt.
But it was free.
“Get behind the trunk!”
Croagunk stumbled into cover.
Venomoth fired Psybeam.
The attack struck the tree instead, splintering wood.
Adrian looked around.
Mira had gained distance.
Good.
The Venonat were following her.
Not good.
“Croagunk!”
The Poison-type looked toward him.
Adrian pointed after Mira.
“We don’t beat it.
We get out.”
Croagunk’s eyes flicked toward Venomoth.
For a moment Adrian thought it might refuse.
Then it moved.
Fast.
Without the weights, Croagunk shot between the trees.
Venomoth pursued.
Adrian ran after them.
“Psybeam!”
“Left!”
Croagunk changed direction.
The beam missed.
“Gust!”
“Tree!”
Croagunk ducked behind another trunk.
Wind ripped branches loose.
Adrian kept moving.
They weren’t fighting anymore.
Every command had one purpose.
Distance.
Croagunk jumped over a fallen log.
Adrian went around it.
Venomoth flew directly over.
Then Croagunk stopped.
Adrian almost shouted.
The Poison-type turned.
Venomoth descended after it.
Croagunk waited.
Adrian understood.
“Fake Out!”
Croagunk launched upward, its palm striking Venomoth.
Not enough to hurt it badly, enough to interrupt its flight.
Croagunk landed and ran again.
Adrian smiled despite himself.
That hadn’t been his idea.
Croagunk was learning too.
They didn’t stop until they reached the main route.
Venomoth refused to follow them into the open area filled with humans.
The Venonat had abandoned their pursuit even earlier.
Mira sat against a roadside tree, breathing heavily.
Adrian bent forward with his hands on his knees.
Croagunk simply dropped onto its back.
For almost a minute, nobody spoke.
Then Mira started laughing.
Adrian looked at her.
“What’s funny?”
“You.”
“What about me?”
“You told me I was the mission.”
“You were.”
“That’s the most Rocket thing anyone has ever said to me.”
Adrian straightened.
“I’m not sure that’s a compliment.”
“It isn’t.”
Croagunk sat up.
Mira looked toward it.
“Your Croagunk is good.”
Adrian nodded.
“I know.”
“Confident.”
“Accurate.”
She rolled her eyes.
Adrian crouched beside Croagunk.
“Let me see.” A quick Scan appeared.
Pokémon Scan
Species: Croagunk ♂ Level: 7.
Rank: Baby Potential: Blue Ability: Anticipation Moves: Poison Sting · Mud-Slap · Fake Out (Egg Move) · Cross Chop (Egg Move) Status: Injured.
Moderate Bruising, Fatigued Evaluation: Extraordinary Individual
No major injury.
Adrian retrieved a Potion from Mira’s field kit and treated the worst bruising.
“We’re done for today.”
Croagunk didn’t protest.
That was how Adrian knew it was truly tired.
Mira watched him replace the training weights in his backpack.
“How long have you had him?”
“About a week.”
She stared.
“Seriously?”
“Yeah.”
“And you’re already doing weighted conditioning?”
“Carefully.”
Mira looked at Croagunk, then back at Adrian.
“Most new trainers spend their first month trying to teach their Pokémon to respond consistently to three commands.”
“We don’t have a month.”
“The trial?”
Adrian looked at her.
Mira shrugged.
“I work for Rocket.
I know how recruitment works.”
“What is the second trial?”
“No idea.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because if I knew, I’d sell the information.”
Adrian considered that.
Fair.
They started back toward Cerulean. Get faster updates on g.com.
This time Croagunk returned to its Poké Ball voluntarily.
The Mission Hall was busy when they returned.
Mira approached the counter first and placed her sample cases down.
“Collection successful.”
The clerk scanned them, then Adrian’s ID.
A notification appeared.
Escort Mission Complete Base Reward: +45 TRP Current Balance: 115 TRP
Adrian paused.
Three digits.
For the first time, his balance had crossed one hundred.
Mira noticed.
“First hundred?”
“That obvious?”
“You looked at the number too long.”
Adrian pocketed the card.
“What can I say?
I’m rich.”
“In Rocket?” She laughed.
“You’re broke.”
Then she collected her samples and walked toward the research wing.
Adrian watched her leave before heading for the Pokémon Center.
She was right.
One hundred fifteen TRP sounded significant only until he remembered the Rocket Market.
A decent TM could consume all of it and demand more.
Rare evolutionary resources cost thousands.
High-potential Pokémon from Rocket reserves could cost amounts Adrian couldn’t currently imagine paying.
One hundred fifteen was nothing.
But it was more than he’d possessed yesterday.
That was enough.
Croagunk spent two hours receiving treatment.
Adrian used the time in the library.
He wasn’t searching for moves.
He was researching type matchups.
He already knew the familiar chart from Earth.
Fire beat Grass, Water beat Fire, Psychic devastated Poison and Fighting.
That knowledge remained useful.
But reality added layers the games never needed.
Flying Pokémon weren’t dangerous merely because Flying attacks were effective against Fighting-types.
They controlled an entire dimension of movement.
A Ground Pokémon didn’t automatically become helpless against something airborne if it could manipulate terrain.
An attack being resisted didn’t mean it couldn’t break bones if the Pokémon using it was overwhelmingly stronger.
Type advantage mattered.
Position mattered.
Environment mattered.
Rank mattered.
And strategy could manipulate all four.
Adrian spent nearly an hour reading about aerial opponents.
Then he found something that made him stop.
A training article written by a retired Rocket officer discussed combating Flying-types with terrestrial Pokémon.
The officer’s argument was simple.
Don’t train your Pokémon to reach the flyer.
Train the flyer to come to your Pokémon.
Adrian reread the section.
It described controlling attack angles, using terrain to restrict flight paths, pressuring ranged attacks, and deliberately creating openings that encouraged aerial Pokémon to dive.
Beedrill.
Venomoth.
Both battles had shown the same weakness.
Croagunk’s strongest techniques required close range.
Trying to jump after flying Pokémon surrendered control.
But if Adrian could make them approach…
He smiled.
There it was.
Something worth training.
The following morning, Croagunk stood in the artificial swamp wearing its weights again.
It looked betrayed.
“You enjoyed yesterday too much.”
Croagunk glanced down at the bands.
“You’re faster without them.”
Croagunk nodded.
“So we keep training with them.”
The enthusiasm vanished.
Adrian activated three moving targets.
One traveled along the ground, two moved overhead.
“New exercise.”
Croagunk lowered its stance.
Adrian pointed toward the airborne targets.
“We’re not chasing those anymore.”
The targets began moving.
“Poison Sting.”
Croagunk fired.
The first barrage missed.
“Again.”
Another miss.
“Don’t try to hit it.” Croagunk glanced toward him.
“Control where it goes.”
He pointed toward the left aerial target.
“Fire on its right.”
Croagunk fired.
The target automatically moved away from the incoming attack.
Left.
Exactly where Adrian wanted it.
“Again.
Above.”
Another Poison Sting.
The target descended.
Croagunk’s eyes sharpened.
It understood.
Adrian smiled.
“That’s it.”
They continued.
Attack after attack.
Not aimed at the opponent, aimed at its choices.
After twenty minutes, Adrian activated the ground target as well.
Now Croagunk had to track three things simultaneously.
It failed almost immediately.
Good.
They had found another weakness.
That meant they had something to improve.
Hours later, Croagunk lay exhausted beside the swamp while Adrian checked the central countdown through his Rocket ID.
21 Days Until Trial Two.
One week gone.
Three remained.
Croagunk was still level seven.
Still Baby rank.
Adrian had 115 TRP.
And they had just escaped their second Beginner-rank opponent rather than defeating it.
There was plenty of room to improve.
Adrian looked at Croagunk.
The Poison-type was staring at the moving aerial targets even while resting.
Watching their patterns.
Thinking.
Adrian closed the display.
Three weeks.
That would have to be enough.