The battle arenas were louder than Adrian remembered.
Commands echoed across dozens of fields, mixing with the crack of attacks striking reinforced barriers and the cries of battling Pokémon.
Several matches were underway simultaneously, while trainers waited along the edges for fields to become available.
Adrian stopped near the entrance with Croagunk beside him.
He’d considered returning to the swamp.
After their encounter with Rattata, however, he’d changed his mind.
Croagunk didn’t need stronger attacks yet.
Cross Chop already gave it more raw power than most Baby-rank Pokémon could handle.
Fake Out provided speed and disruption, Mud-Slap offered range and accuracy control, and Poison Sting gave it another ranged option.
The problem wasn’t Croagunk’s moveset.
It was Adrian.
During the Rattata fight, he’d reacted instead of controlled the battle.
His commands had come after the wild Pokémon moved, forcing Croagunk to compensate.
Against another inexperienced opponent, that might work.
Against a real trainer, it wouldn’t.
“Let’s find out how bad we are,” Adrian said.
“Croa.” Croagunk sounded almost amused.
They approached a terminal beside the nearest group of fields.
Recruit Battle Registration
Standard Match.
Free Ranked Match.
5 TRP Entry Private Field.
10 TRP/Hour
Adrian selected Standard.
Spending nearly a third of everything he’d earned on a ranked battle would be idiotic.
The terminal scanned his Rocket ID.
Searching for Opponent…
It took eleven seconds.
Match Found Arena 14 Adrian vs.
Mason
They headed toward the assigned field.
Someone was already waiting, and Adrian recognized him.
Mason had been among the recruits who selected early during the Pokémon distribution.
Tall and broad-shouldered, he looked closer to seventeen than fifteen, a fading bruise still covering one side of his jaw from the first trial.
More importantly, Adrian remembered his Pokémon.
Machop.
Mason recognized him as well.
“Croagunk guy.”
“Machop guy.”
Mason laughed.
“Fair enough.”
They stepped onto opposite sides of the battlefield.
No referee waited for them.
Instead, cameras mounted around the arena connected to an automated system.
A mechanical voice sounded overhead.
“Standard recruit battle.
One Pokémon each.
Victory by knockout, surrender, or recall.
Deliberately attacking opposing trainers is prohibited.
Begin.”
Mason pointed forward.
“Machop!” His Poké Ball opened, and the Fighting-type materialized.
Adrian’s system responded.
Pokémon Scan
Species: Machop ♂ Level: 6.
Rank: Baby Potential: Green Ability: Guts Moves: Low Kick · Leer · Focus Energy · Karate Chop Status: Healthy Evaluation: Exceptional Individual
Adrian’s eyes narrowed.
The Green-potential Machop.
He remembered seeing it during selection.
If Croagunk hadn’t been there, this very Pokémon might have become his starter.
And it had already reached level six.
Mason hadn’t wasted his first day.
“Croagunk.” The Poison-type hopped onto the field.
Machop slapped its fists together.
Croagunk simply stared.
“Ready!”
Mason attacked.
“Karate Chop!” Machop sprinted forward.
Adrian forced himself not to repeat his mistake from Route 24.
He had time.
Distance first.
Speed second.
Attack angle third.
“Back right.
Mud-Slap.”
Croagunk jumped diagonally.
Machop adjusted course.
Exactly what Adrian wanted.
Croagunk’s foot scraped across the battlefield, flinging a wave of dirt and grit toward Machop.
“Through it!”
Machop raised an arm across its face and charged directly through the attack.
Adrian frowned.
Aggressive.
Mason wanted close combat.
Probably because Machop excelled there.
Croagunk disappeared forward, its palm striking Machop’s cheek.
The Fighting-type staggered.
“Poison Sting!”
Croagunk fired.
Several purple needles struck Machop’s chest, and it stumbled another step.
“Again!”
“Low Kick!” Mason’s command came at nearly the same time.
Machop dropped low, its leg sweeping beneath Croagunk.
Croagunk crashed onto its back.
“Karate Chop!”
“Roll!”
Croagunk threw itself sideways.
Machop’s hand slammed into the ground where its head had been.
Adrian’s heartbeat accelerated.
That would have hurt.
“Cross Chop!”
Croagunk sprang upward, both arms crossed.
Mason’s expression changed.
“Back!”
Too late.
Croagunk struck.
Machop managed to raise both arms, but the collision still sent it skidding backward.
Mason stared.
“What the hell was that?”
Adrian didn’t answer.
Cross Chop was the strongest move on the field by a significant margin.
But Croagunk hadn’t executed it perfectly.
The attack possessed power, yet its balance afterward was terrible; it stumbled the moment its feet touched the ground.
Mason noticed too.
“Now!
Low Kick!”
Machop rushed in.
“Jump!”
Croagunk tried.
Too slow.
The kick caught its ankle, and it spun through the air before crashing onto its shoulder.
Machop followed.
“Karate Chop!”
Adrian saw the problem.
If he told Croagunk to dodge, Mason would keep pressing.
So don’t retreat.
“Poison Sting!”
Croagunk fired from the ground.
Mason’s eyes widened.
“Stop!” Machop couldn’t.
The needles struck its face and shoulder at point-blank range, and it recoiled.
“Fake Out!”
Croagunk surged upward and struck.
Machop staggered again.
“Cross Chop!”
“Low Kick!”
Both Pokémon attacked at once.
Machop swept its leg; Croagunk brought its crossed arms downward.
The attacks collided awkwardly, and both were thrown apart.
Croagunk rolling twice before stopping, Machop landing heavily on its side.
Neither moved.
Adrian’s fingers tightened.
“Croagunk.”
The Poison-type’s hand pressed against the ground.
Slowly, it stood.
Across the battlefield, Machop did the same.
Both were breathing heavily.
Mason grinned.
“Again.”
Adrian found himself returning it.
“Again.”
Machop charged.
This time Adrian didn’t issue an attack.
“Wait.”
Croagunk remained still.
Ten meters.
Eight.
Six.
Mason’s smile disappeared.
“Karate Chop!”
Four meters.
“Now.
Mud-Slap!”
Croagunk kicked dirt upward.
Machop ran directly into it, eyes snapping shut.
“Fake Out!”
Croagunk struck from the side.
Machop stumbled.
Adrian saw the opening.
But he remembered the Rattata.
Cross Chop wasn’t necessary.
“Poison Sting!”
The barrage struck Machop’s exposed side, and it collapsed onto one knee. New chapters come out on novelping.com first.
Mason waited.
Machop attempted to stand, arms shaking, then fell forward.
A buzzer sounded.
“Machop unable to continue.
Winner: Adrian.”
Silence lasted for a moment.
Then Croagunk sat down.
Adrian laughed.
“Yeah.
I’m tired too.”
He walked onto the field.
Mason was already crouching beside Machop.
“You good?” Machop groaned.
It wasn’t unconscious, just exhausted.
Mason recalled it, then looked toward Adrian.
“Cross Chop.” It wasn’t a question.
Adrian nodded.
“Egg move.”
“Of course.” Mason shook his head.
“I thought I got lucky with Machop.”
“You did.” That earned Adrian a surprised look.
“Green potential.
Guts.
Karate Chop already learned.”
Mason’s expression sharpened, and Adrian realized his mistake at once.
Nobody should be able to say that with certainty just from watching one battle.
He kept his voice unbothered.
“Guessing,” Adrian said.
“Good instincts, decent aggression for his size, and Guts usually shows early.
Wouldn’t swear to the exact grade.”
Mason relaxed slightly, though he still looked impressed.
“Yeah?
I had him tested yesterday.
Green, same as you said.” He glanced toward Croagunk.
“What grade’s yours?”
Adrian hesitated.
There was no benefit in telling everyone he possessed a Blue-potential Pokémon.
“Good enough.”
Mason snorted.
“Keep your secrets.” He walked away.
Adrian watched him leave.
That had been careless.
His system gave him information other people needed machines to obtain.
If he casually mentioned abilities, moves, or potential without a believable explanation, someone would eventually notice.
And Team Rocket was exactly the wrong organization to become curious about his secrets.
“Need to watch that,” he murmured.
Croagunk looked at him.
“Croa?”
“Nothing.”
They headed toward the Pokémon Center.
As they walked, Adrian replayed the battle.
They had won.
That didn’t mean they’d fought well.
Croagunk had taken unnecessary hits, Adrian had leaned too hard on Cross Chop’s power, their transitions between moves had been clumsy, and several commands had come too late.
Mason had been inexperienced too.
Against someone skilled, those mistakes would have been punished.
Still, something had changed.
During the Rattata battle, Adrian had felt like a spectator shouting suggestions.
Today, for several moments, he’d controlled the flow.
Not perfectly.
But enough.
His system appeared as he looked toward Croagunk.
Pokémon Scan
Species: Croagunk ♂ Level: 6.
Rank: Baby Potential: Blue Ability: Anticipation Moves: Poison Sting · Mud-Slap · Fake Out (Egg Move) · Cross Chop (Egg Move) Status: Fatigued.
Minor Bruising Evaluation: Extraordinary Individual
Adrian stopped.
Level six.
Their first trainer battle had been enough.
Croagunk noticed him staring and tilted its head.
“You got stronger.”
“Croa.”
Adrian smiled.
“Don’t get arrogant.
We were terrible.”
Croagunk’s expression flattened.
Adrian laughed and continued walking.
Twenty-nine TRP.
Two completed missions.
One trainer victory.
One level gained.
Not bad for their first full day.
But the countdown toward the second trial hadn’t stopped.
Twenty-eight days remained.
Adrian intended to make every one of them count.