(3) V1 - Chapter III

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Without issue, Kasumi and Vulpix make it into the forest, encountering no Pokemon besides the ones already being fought by other trainers. During the time taken to walk to the forest, Kasumi thought about her potential partners. All of them need to have the motivation to make it to the top, to become the champion, otherwise they'll all lag behind as a team. So that's requirement No. 1. Other than that, she doesn't mind who she has on her team, though Scyther does sound like a great addition to her team. In addition to this, Kasumi doesn't necessarily need to think about potential partners too much. There isn't a limit to how many Pokemon one can catch, though there is a limit to holding only 10 of these catches on person in an effort to decrease crime rates. 

If Kasumi does want to catch the Scyther, she'll need to level up Vulpix a lot so she doesn't faint. So, that's her main aim right now. The forest is a generally low-levelled area making for easy EXP. 

Kasumi takes out her earpieces from her bag and puts them in, they don't hinder the ambient noise at all, which is good as she won't get caught off guard, but they do allow her to hear what her PokePhone's notifications are without looking at the screen. If she wished to, she could also listen to music. It was one of the things Mark had given her since it was a beta model.

Hearing a bush rustle to the right, Kasumi is shaken from her thoughts and takes out her PokePhone in preparation to scan it. When she captures a glimpse of what appears to be a Paras, she scans it. PokePhones are excellent for that, they can quickly identify Pokemon, even when there's a large distance between it and the PokePhone. 

*Ping* 

____

Paras: Level 3. (0/27 EXP)

Growth rate: Medium-Fast

Nature: Lax

National No. 0046

Type: Bug, Grass

Species: Mushroom Pokemon 

Height: 0.3 m (1'00")

Weight: 5.4 kg (11.9 lbs)

Abilities: Effect Spore, Dry Skin, Damp (hidden ability) 

Known moves: Scratch (Normal), Absorb (Grass)

Stats: 15/15 HP, 9 ATK, 8 DEF+, 7 SP.ATK, 7 SP.DEF-, 6 SPD.

____

Dry Skin. Perfect. Since the Paras has Dry Skin, all Fire-Type moves deal 25% more damage and since Vulpix is a Fire-Type, her doing any Fire-Type moves already has a 50% damage bonus. In addition to this, Fire-Type moves already deal 4x damage since Paras is a Bug and Grass-Type Pokemon. Essentially, it's a one-hit-knock-out. Though, they'll have to make sure they don't accidentally cause a forest fire in the process. 

"Vulpix." Kasumi whispers, "Over there, it's a Paras. Hit it with an ember for me but try not to ignite the surroundings in the process." 

Vulpix nods, fire swirling in her mouth before letting out an Ember. It hits Paras, burning its body and making it drop to the ground, fainted. The fire disappears just as fast, not setting anything else alight. 

"Well done, Vulpix." 

"Vul! Vul!" 

*Ping* <<+27 EXP to Vulpix and +14 ???>>

There was another rustle from the same direction, that being to the right of Kasumi and out comes not 1, not 2, but 8 Paras. I forgot Paras stick together. That's fine. "Vulpix, use Ember on them all with the same condition as last time." 

As quickly as the battle started, it ended, all 8 of the Paras' fainting in a heap on the ground. 

*Ping* <<+88 EXP to Vulpix, +44 ???>>, <<Vulpix is now level 7! Stats have increased.>>, <<+190 EXP to Vulpix, +95 ???>>, <<Vulpix is now level 8! Stats have increased.>>, <<+34 EXP to Vulpix, +17 ???>>

____

Vulpix: Level 8. (60/217 EXP)

Growth rate: Medium-Fast

Nature: Timid

National No. 0037

Type: Fire

Species: Fox Pokemon 

Height: 0.6 m (2'00")

Weight: 9.9kg (21.8 lbs)

Abilities: Flash Fire, Drought (hidden ability) 

Known moves: Ember (Fire), Tail Whip (Normal), Disable (Normal), Quick Attack (Normal), Baby-Doll Eyes (Fairy), Flame Charge (Fire), Growl (Normal)

Stats: 31/31 HP, 12 ATK-, 13 DEF, 20 SP.ATK, 17 SP.DEF, 19 SPD+.

____

???: Level 10. (206/413 EXP)

Growth rate: Slow

Nature: Modest

National No. ???

Type:???

Species: ???

Height: 1.795 m (5'10")

Weight: 62.8kg (138.45 lbs)

Abilities: ???

Known moves: Transform? (Normal), Cosmic Power (Psychic), Seismic Toss (Fighting), Gravity (Psychic), Quick Attack (Normal), Confusion (Psychic), Take Down (Normal), Agility (Psychic), Protect (Normal), Swift (Normal), Reflect (Psychic)

Stats: 90/90 HP, 43 ATK-, 49 DEF, 67 SP.ATK+, 49 SP.DEF, 51 SPD.

____

Hmm, halfway to my next level and that's not even by me fighting, just being somewhat included. Kasumi nods at Vulpix and she jumps onto her shoulder because of the gesture.

"Level 8, not bad." She says, giving Vulpix a soft scratch behind her ears. "Alright, let's keep moving, we've probably drawn attention with that noise." 

"Vulpix!" 

"Hm? Well, yes. Do you not want to fight the Scyther?" Kasumi asks, answering Vulpix's question on whether she's aiming to fight the Scyther. 

"Pix!" 

Kasumi's lips quirk up slightly as if she's about to smile but doesn't, "Knew you'd be up for it, but, we've got to get you levelled up a bit more first if we want to stand a chance, okay?" 

"Vul! Vul!" 

She quickly makes her way through the shrubs with Vulpix still on her shoulder, weaving between trees and bushes, making sure to stay silent. "Do you reckon we'll find an evolved Pokemon around here? They'll give you more EXP." 

"Vulpix?" 

"Is that a question or an answer because it sounds like you're not sure to me," Kasumi mentions, letting out a breathy and short-lived chuckle causing Vulpix to huff and look away, upset. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Let's hope we come across, maybe, a Parasect or something similar since we've seen a bunch of Paras. If you're up for the challenge, that is, since the lowest level Parasect we can come across is 24, so it's highly unlikely we will encounter one at all. Even then, your stats might be a bit too low to take one on… hmm… a Butterfree would be best, I'd say, as they evolve from a Metapod at level 10 so they'll be rather weak. Keep your eyes peeled for any butterfly-type Pokemon, Vulpix." 

"Vulpix." She replies, voice lowered so they don't draw attention.

"Thank you." Kasumi nods, giving Vulpix another fleeting yet soft pat on the head. 

Kasumi wanders around for a while, nearing on half an hour, avoiding most low-level Pokemon they come across since it'll just draw attention and they aren't really useful for training. That is until they, fortunately, stumble across a Butterfree in a small clearing. 

She crouches down and Vulpix hops off her shoulder, stretching its legs and paws, "Well isn't that lucky?" Kasumi whispers to Vulpix to which she nods. 

Taking out her PokePhone, she scans the Butterfree.

*Ping*

____

Butterfree: Level 10. (12/331 EXP)

Growth rate: Medium-Fast

Nature: Docile

National No. 0012

Type: Bug, Flying-Type

Species: Butterfly Pokemon

 Height: 1.1 m (3'07")

Weight: 32.0 kg (70.5 lbs)

Abilities: Compound Eyes, Tinted Lens (hidden ability)

Known moves: Bug Bite (Bug), Gust (Flying), Harden (Normal), String Shot (Bug), Tackle (Normal), Supersonic (Normal), Confusion (Psychic)

Stats: 32/32 HP, 14 ATK, 15 DEF, 23 SP.ATK, 21 SP.DEF, 19 SPD.

____

"Okay, Butterfree and you have the same speed levels but with Quick Attack, you'll be faster. Otherwise, all of your stats are slightly lower so be careful. Using Fire-Type moves will be best since it'll deal double damage, okay? If you can see an opening and can use an Ember or a Flame Charge, then do it. Even if you have the Type advantage, still be careful of the Moves it throws at you. Butterfree has Tinted Lens which makes moves that would only deal half damage deal a normal amount instead. Ready?" 

"Vulpix!" 

"Good. The second you jump out, Growl, Baby-Doll Eyes and Tail Whip, then use Flame Charge and once the attack hits, Quick Attack." Vulpix nods in agreement, "On three. One… Two… Three!" 

Vulpix jumps out from the bushes, startling the Butterfree. She swishes her tail back and forth, eyes shining and a growl rumbling in her throat before lighting on fire and sprinting toward Butterfree. Vulpix is quicker since Flame Charge adds speed to the Pokemon using it, and since Butterfree got caught off guard, Vulpix got a good hit, but not good enough to be critical and double the damage inflicted. 

Vulpix bounces back a bit before dashing forward, body faintly glowing while using Quick Attack, knocking the Butterfree out of the air.

*Ping* <<Vulpix 13 has dealt damage!>>, <<Vulpix 10 has dealt damage!>> 

Since when does my PokePhone tell me how much damage my team has inflicted? Useful, but unexpected. Though, it's not unwelcome, it'll help quite a bit. Seeing that Butterfree has 32 HP, it should now be at 9. That's just one more Flame Charge or Quick Attack. If my math is correct, it should take only another Ember too. That won't really change if Vulpix can get a critical hit in or not.

Since Kasumi has her earpieces in, she can hear the notifications through them instead of having to read them off of a screen. 

It was then that Butterfree decided to send Confusion surging towards Vulpix. "Dodge it then use Ember, get some distance between you," Kasumi stated calmly on the sidelines. Vulpix narrowly dodged the beam of Confusion since they were so close and jumped back, flames whirling in her mouth before being shot at Butterfree who twirled out of the way before it got hit. 

The Butterfree flew up in the air slightly higher, flapping its delicate wings harshly, sending a large Gust of wind toward Vulpix who didn't have time to dodge, getting pushed back by the force. "Another Ember, shoot two this time, run to its right side and then Flame Charge." 

*Ping* <<Vulpix 8 31 has taken damage! (23 HP)>> 

I expected that to deal more damage… not my problem.

Vulpix shook itself, spewing two balls of flame at Butterfree, jumping to its right side and setting itself aflame, charging at the butterfly Pokemon hovering in the air. It flaps its wings, drifting away from one of the Embers but getting grazed by the second one, inflicting a burn but not yet dealing any damage.

*Ping* <<Vulpix has inflicted status effect: Burn on Butterfree!>>

The Ember grazed one of the Butterfree's wings, burning it and setting it alight with a bright orange glow causing it to lose balance in the air and start falling to the ground making for an easy hit. Vulpix notices this opening, shooting another Ember at it while Flame Charging, striking it with both attacks at the same time. 

*Ping* <<Vulpix 10 has dealt damage!>>, <<Vulpix 14 has dealt damage!>>, <<Wild Butterfree has fainted!>>, <<+718 EXP to Vulpix, +359 ???>>, <<Vulpix is now level 9! Stats have increased.>>, <<Vulpix is now level 10! Stats have increased.>>, <>

____

Vulpix: Level 10. (290/331EXP)

Growth rate: Medium-Fast

Nature: Timid

National No. 0037

Type: Fire

Species: Fox Pokemon 

Height: 0.6 m (2'00")

Weight: 9.9kg (21.8 lbs)

Abilities: Flash Fire, Drought (hidden ability) 

Known moves: Ember (Fire), Tail Whip (Normal), Disable (Normal), Quick Attack (Normal), Baby-Doll Eyes (Fairy), Flame Charge (Fire), Growl (Normal)

Stats: 28/36 HP, 14 ATK-, 16 DEF, 24 SP.ATK, 21 SP.DEF, 24 SPD+.

____

???: Level 11. (152/497 EXP)

Growth rate: Slow

Nature: Modest

National No. ???

Type:???

Species: ???

Height: 1.795 m (5'10")

Weight: 62.8kg (138.45 lbs)

Abilities: ???

Known moves: Transform? (Normal), Cosmic Power (Psychic), Seismic Toss (Fighting), Gravity (Psychic), Quick Attack (Normal), Confusion (Psychic), Take Down (Normal), Agility (Psychic), Protect (Normal), Swift (Normal), Reflect (Psychic)

Stats: 98/98 HP, 46 ATK-, 52 DEF, 72 SP.ATK+, 52 SP.DEF, 54 SPD.

____

"Almost the same level as me." Kasumi smiles, addressing her Vulpix that is sat at her heel. Vulpix looks up at her curiously, tilting her head. 

"Vulpix?" She asks, wondering what her trainer meant by 'same level'. 

Kasumi crouches down, lifting Vulpix into her arms, "You didn't know? I thought you'd be able to sense that I'm a Pokemon too." 

"Pix!" 

"Oh? So you just needed confirmation. Well, you've got it, I am a Pokemon, though quite a bit different from you and the others." 

"Pix Pix?" 

Smiling still, Kasumi strokes Vulpix's fur gently, smoothing out the ruffled fur from the fight just moments beforehand. "I mean that you are a purebred, in a way, and I am not. Your parents are both Ninetails or both Vulpix, one of my parents is a Ditto and the other… want to take a guess?" 

"Vulpix!" 

"No, not a Turtonator. What gave you that idea? Was it the hair?" 

"Vulpix." 

"Huh, my hair is a little similar to a Turtonator, but my appearance as it is now actually has nothing to do with my parents. It's just how I subconsciously wanted to appear or subconsciously thought I'd look like in human form." Kasumi explains, placing Vulpix on her shoulder. "Any other guesses?" 

"Vul Vul?" 

"Yes, they're a legendary, it explains why my stats are so much higher than yours. Still, that's too broad, want to guess which legendary?" 

Vulpix took a moment to think, apparently a moment too long since there was more rustling in the vegetation. "This topic will have to wait," Kasumi stated, Vulpix nodded seriously.