The trainer's search had only been going on for some handful of minutes when the ground beneath her suddenly began to rumble. She stopped in her tracks, her eyes scanning her immediate surroundings. It was faint at first, like a small earthquake or a heavy truck driving close by, but something in the back of her mind was warning of an incoming danger. The shaking grew heavier and more violent until a loud, deep cry drew her attention to a nearby outcropping of rocks to her west. Some of the rocks weren't inanimate though. They twisted, turned and writhed until a giant snake of stone and dirt towered above its surroundings.

”An Onix.” Evelyn thought to herself. She wasn't a professor by any means, but she'd learned the basics from watching League battles being broadcast throughout Lumiose. The giant stone serpent was a rock and a ground type, both of which were advantageous over her fire type Chimchar. It wasn't a favorable match up for her at all. The woman pondered over her options quietly as she watched the Onix meander around its rock pile. She didn't know what kind of Pokemon made their homes in the area. Water types were likely waiting back in the city and beach while the entire route before her was full of rock and ground types.

Life wasn't fair and it was also cruel. It was time for her Chimchar to learn that lesson. The only difference would be that she would do her damnedest to guide the chimp to success. She took a brisk stride towards the towering stone type until the giant creature noticed the approaching intruder and turned its head to face her. A deep growl shook the air around her, a noise that sounded much like large rocks colliding and scraping against each other. A warning, she figured, to retreat or fight.

”Chimchar, time for your first test!” called the trainer, grabbing the fire type's pokéball from her belt and tossing it between her and their adversary. The sphere burst open to release her starter onto the field. The Onix was far more intimidating and massive up close. At its full height, Evelyn figured she would have to strain her neck back to see its head when it was at full height. Whatever nervousness she felt at the thought of the coming battle was drowned by a determination to succeed. This would be her first and she intended to walk away the victor. Her Chimchar, however, seems hesitant to take on the bond of rocks that was many multiple times its size. It cast a nervous look at its trainer, as if waiting for her to recall it and retreat.

”Pull yourself together and use Nasty Plot. We'll roast that thing until it melts if we have to.” she said. Her voice, while calm, was also stern and cold. A shiver went down the monkey, but it nodded and closed its eyes. Whatever went through its mind was a mystery, but when its eyes reopened, its nervous stare had become a fierce glare towards its opponent. The towering stone creature seemed to take the hint and plunge forward, aiming its ramming Tackle right towards the fire type.

”Dodge to the right!” ordered the woman. The order had been spoken with enough time to react, but the monkey's reflexes didn't seem to be quite on par with its trainers. It leaped to its right just a hair too late and the grazing blow from the giant snake sent the small monkey rolling. As it rose back up to its feet, the Onix had already coiled its body around and used its huge mass to surround it. Its head above seemed contemplate its quarry and began to close its stony body around its smaller foe.

”Use your Flamethrower! Aim for its head!” Evelyn called. At first, she wasn't sure if her Pokemon had heard. Maybe it had been paralyzed by fear? Her eyes narrowed just in time for the Nasty Plot empowered jet of flame erupted from behind the wall of stone, engulfing the Onix's upper body In its intense heat. The rock snake Pokémon roared in pain and drew its head back and away from the attack. Its stone body singed and glowed in a few areas. The fire type attack hadn't technically been very effective, but it definitely seemed to hurt a lot. The rock type's response was quick. The tail end of its body wrapped around her Chimchar, raising it up into the air as it began to squeeze down tightly around its small frame. The monkey's cries and struggles echoed through the air, making its trainer's heart beat quicker.

”Again! Burn it to the ground!” was the decision. Her pokemon struggled for a few more seconds before unleashing another burst of flame from its mouth, again aimed at the head of its opponent. This time, the flames didn't stop until the Onix's stony grip weakened and eventually released its captor. The fire monkey landed deftly on its feet, but fell into a sitting position as the Onix collapsed from its burns and damage.

”...Good job.” Evelyn said to her starter as she eyed the downed wild Pokémon. The Chimchar seemed pleased with the praise despite having been nearly crushed by a sentient piles of rocks. A closer inspection revealed that the fire type was more shaken than damaged. Getting tackled and then bound by such a large opponent had roughed it up a bit, but it was willing and able to continue on. ”Let's go. We've got plenty of time left in the day.” she said. A quick flick of her wrist returned the Pokémon to its ball and, with only a passing glance at their charred, unconscious foe, strode away to find more wild Pokémon.

The next several minutes remained fairly quiet. The quiet hills seemed to be teeming with wild Pokemon, but many of them seemed to be avoiding the previously downed Onix and the more populated areas. As she ventured further from the roads, she caught more and more glimpses of the wild Pokemon around her. Some would allow themselves to be seen while others would scatter away as soon as she turned to look at them. It wasn't until a thrown rock landed in front of her that any of the creatures stayed long enough for her to initiate any sort of contact. Her eyes glanced down at the stone at her feet and traced back the arc it had been thrown in. A monkey with a long tail and a hand at the end was perched upon a rock several feet away from her, another stone grasped in its pulled back tail-hand.

Annoyance pricked her mind as she swatted the second stone out of the air and took a step towards the Aipom. Judging by the mischievous chuckle that she heard, the little monkey apparently thought its rock throwing was funny. It wasn't. It reminded her of the few times back in Kalos when things had been thrown at her when she'd been caught pick pocketing or stealing from a store. The monkey's grin wavered for a moment as it caught sight of the stone cold glare on the woman's face, but it did not back down. It dropped the third rock it had picked up and turned fully to face the human. It contemplated her as she grabbed her Chimchar's ball from her belt, then stuck its tongue out in a taunting matter.

”You're not funny.” Evelyn muttered as she released the Chimchar from its ball. The fire type and the normal type locked eyes for a moment, but neither moved. The trainer wasn't sure what the wild monkey was capable of and she didn't care. She was going to see it burn. ”Use Nasty Plot. Get ready to teach this thing its place.” she said coldly. The Chimchar didn't look back or hesitate as it took its moment to empower itself. Perhaps it was her tone of voice? She'd heard that Pokemon were very keen and influenced by the attitude and feelings of its trainer.

As the fiery chimp began to open its eyes though, it was met with a cloud of sand being thrown over it. The Sand Attack met its mark, agitating its targets sight and causing it to rub its eyes in a futile attempt to quickly scrub out the dirt. The Aipom's demeanor seemed to be slowly giving way for a more serious tone. Its quirky smile remained, but there was a focus in its eyes as it tossed another cloud of sand at its trainer-owned opponent.

”Step back and use another Nasty Plot!” the trainer said. Her Chimchar quickly stepped back to avoid the second Sand Attack, taking the opportunity to power itself up further. Their aggressor wouldn't win by just throwing dirt at them and one wrong move would spell disaster for it. All they had to do was wait for that opening. Another Sand Attack, another dodge. The second miss in a row seemed to break the Aipom's patience. As the Chimchar stepped backward, the normal type lunged forward and through the thin veil of dust left in the air, swiping at the opposing monkey with its tail.

”Now, catch that attack!” Evelyn ordered. Despite its hindered vision, the chimp Pokemon managed to catch the incoming tail with a tight grip as it came down upon it. In a human fight, it would have been an easy win with minimal damage taken. However, in a Pokemon battle, the maneuver obviously had consequence on both sides. The scratch attack caused some level of pain for the fire type, given the grimace that passed its features as it battled to hold the now struggling Aipom in place.

”Don't let it break free. Use Flamethrower!” she said. With its tail held down, the wild Pokemon was more or less defenseless to the hugely boosted Flamethrower that erupted from the smaller fire type. The flames engulfed the long tail Pokemon's torso and head in its scarlet embrace, pulling a cry of both surprise and pain from the receiving creature. The attack was intense enough that Evelyn felt the heat from where she was standing a few feet away. A couple of seconds passed before the flames stopped, revealing the damage the attack had wrought. The flamethrower had left their opponent badly badly singed and burned. Its cheeky smile had all but disappeared and had been replaced with a look of shock and it only managed to stand for a few more seconds before finally collapsing with a defeated groan.

The trainer examined the downed monkey. Despite her annoyance with it, she admired its spunk and focus. Her handed hovered over the belt pouch that contained her empty pokeballs for a few second as she mulled over the thought of catching it. Properly trained, it'd probably be a pretty decent fighter. Yet, it also seemed a bit too rowdy for her tastes. She didn't need one of her own going around and throwing crap at people whenever it was out of its ball. It'd only end with more trouble and attention than she preferred to receive.

”Let's go. We're done with this one.” she said as she recalled her Chimchar. She still had time left to find more suitable members for her team, if she was lucky enough to find one at all. Then again, luck had never really seemed to be on her side until recently and it certainly wasn't something she liked to rely on.

The sun was beginning to lower over the horizon and land around was beginning to grow darker. The sky was painted with a plethora of orange, violet and blue hues as day transitioned to night and the hills of route 39 were bathed in the orange light of the sunset. In a normal day for her, Evelyn would have been staking out a restaurant for a chance to sneak in and steal her meal or using whatever paltry change she had to buy some cheap food. Not anymore. As it turned out, being a registered trainer had its perks, including meals and rooms at Pokémon centers and money. She didn't rightly know where the latter came from, but it didn't matter. It was because of the trickle of currency that both she and her Chimchar would be able to eat a fresh and properly prepared meal later.

Before that though, she had another annoyance to deal with. The small, chubby ball of fur was looking at her quite inquisitively from a few feet away, shifting a little bit closer every few seconds. Even though it had met her cold glare, it hadn't deterred the wild creature from approaching her. Judging by its body structure though, she had a feeling that it was less interested in her and more so interested in whatever it smelled coming from her bag.

”Bug off.” she said, crossing her arms. It was a short and simple demand, but one that didn't seem to get the message through. The only response was a curious grunt from the approaching Pokémon and another step forward. An annoyed sigh escaped from between her lips. She would have preferred to avoid dealing with anything else until after she'd already returned to town and eaten, but the world continued to screw with her in small ways. Fortunately, she had more ways than one to deal with her problems now and she wasn't about to just give away food to some random Pokémon.

”Let's just... get this over with quickly.” she said as she released her own Pokémon onto the field. A part of her felt bad for forcing a fight here. After all, she hardly even knew what the Munchlax was after and it seemed harmless enough. Something told her though that it wouldn't let her go without following her or trying to quickly snatch her bag as she passed. ”Use Nasty Plot.”

For the fourth time in the day, her Chimchar meditated on its thoughts to boost its own power. The appearance of the trainer's Pokémon and its move finally seemed to make the normal type hesitate, but still did not dissuade it entirely. Instead, it turned its curious and now cautious gaze from the trainer to her partner.

”Use Flamethrower.” she called. The spout of flame that erupted from her Chimchar struck their target head on and engulfed the Munchlax entirely. The trainer's eyes narrowed in suspicion. It hadn't even tried to dodge away from the fiery attack. It didn't make sense. Her confusion was dispelled, however, when the flames flickered out. Their opponent stood amidst the distorted air and scorched ground, its arms up in a defensive posture to defend its head and upper chest. While its fur was singed and a rather nasty burn had been left on its lower belly, the creature seemed otherwise unbothered by the attack.

”Looks like a tough one this time.” Evelyn mused aloud. Still, although her attack didn't seem to have too much effect, it seemed effective enough to leave burns. They would just have to debilitate and exhaust it with their speed advantage if they couldn't win through sheer damage. Even as she and her partner watched, the normal type attempted to crouch and curl into a ball and begin a Rollout attack towards the Chimchar. Yet, the burn on its stomach seemed to cause too much pain to effectively perform such an attack, making it easy to dodge. Once it had made its first failed pass, it instead unfurled itself and used one of its arms to perform a mighty sideways strike towards its opponent.

”Counter with Acrobatics!” the woman called. The chimp pushed off hard and launched itself into the air just in time to dodge the blow, flipping once in the air before falling into a strong kick. Their attack landed dead on once again, allowing the more agile combatant to launch itself off of its foe and land some distance away. The wild Pokémon huffed angrily and charged forward again. Its whiffed attacks and the pain from its burn was beginning to get the better of its judgment. For a few minutes, the two pokemon continued their battle of misses and grazes until their foe finally couldn't go on. It raised its arm to strike again, only to heave an unsteady breath and collapse from its ordeal.

”Well done. Good to know you're quick on your feet.” said the trainer as she pulled out an empty pokéball and tossed it at the downed Munchlax. Unlike the two before it, this one's tenacity and powerful strikes had piqued her curiosity. It had powered through its burns fairly well and had even almost knocked out her Chimchar a few times. It'd be a good help for the start of her journey.