There was a trail of scorched earth where the Slugma's path stemmed from, its body dribbling with smoldering sludge that ignited the nearby grass where it touched. It seemed to observe him at first, his fingers finally clicking on the PokeBall to unleash Shoka. He couldn't read any emotion into its eyes, and mistook it for indifference, when it crept dangerously close towards his feet attempting to run him down with its Flame Body.

Kevin cried aloud as his Growlithe appeared: "Shoka, use Roar!" He'd instinctively backed away, but the wild Slugma still approached him brazenly, the canine caught betwixt them and taking a low stance before sharply inhaling. Then she bellowed fiercely, the wild Slugma stiffening at the sound and evidently second guessing its fearless nature, backing away into the brush never to confront him again. But Kevin remained uneasy.


"You're staying out here with me from here on out," he assured Shoka, who barked gleefully at the prospect. His eyes flickered back towards the battling trainers, who were too fixated on their own confrontation to be bothered by him. So he carried on Westbound until he came up on a bank, momentarily stumped. Was he supposed to swim? Shoka wouldn't like that. There was a sheer cliff on his left and a small cluster of trees on the adjacent shoreline, so he hugged the stone face closely, edging his way towards the conspicuously dense foliage.

As he parted the clutter of brush alongside Shoka, they eventually chanced upon a small clearing wherein a few berry plants were growing. Lured by the smell, his Growlithe scampered forward eagerly, sniffing at the berries to isolate the one of its preference. But once more the rattle of the shrubbery called his attention towards a wild pokemon in the brambles, perhaps emerging to challenge him for trespassing on its feeding grounds. He whistled sharply for Shoka's attention.

"Hey girl, we got trouble," he cautioned her promptly.

"Hey, I've seen one of you before," Kevin stated flatly for the enemy wild Vulpix. And because of that experience, he knew better than to try and force this matchup on Shoka. Already he turned to leave.

"Leave the berries; I've got some in my bag," he consoled his Growlithe, who seemed reluctant to give up such choice treats for the sake of the pokemon jealously guarding them. But she padded after him softly, and the enemy Vulpix seemed to ease the tension, its ruffling downy coat smoothing out as they backed away from the pokemon and its trove of berries. He crossed the clearing and onto the opposite side of the forest from where he'd came, noticing the forest was quite unlively. Perhaps anything that could've lived in these trees was scared off by the likes of Slugma and Vulpix, he surmised.


Kevin's stomach growled at him imperatively, causing him to grab for a snack bar in his left pocket, splitting half of it off and sharing it with Shoka while he loitered under the forest canopy. In the distance he could glean where the treeline stopped, hoping that there would be a checkpoint ahead where Route 42 became Enju City. With the collapse of Sprout Tower, it made him wonder about the other regional vistas, and whether they'd begun regulating visitors more heavily in response.

As he finished chewing on the bar, the two trudged towards the sunlight peeking through the clearing, but Kevin's foot caught on something he hadn't noticed. Stubbing his toe and tripping over the obstruction, he quickly found the ground rushing up at him, taking a mouthful of grass and dirt through the mouth. He could feel the scattered pebbles and stones he'd fallen upon beneath him, pressing up against his ribs and joints uncomfortably. He groaned aloud, shifting his weight as he rolled over onto his side, disoriented by the spill enough to overlook the wild pokemon he'd disturbed.

A wild Bonsly tried to untangle itself from Kevin's shoes, dealing a mild sprain to his ankle that meted a howl from the greenhorn, much to Shoka's duress. While he wrenched his foot away from the pokemon, his Growlithe pounced and bit into the pokemon, but instead recoiled at the rough exterior. Kevin didn't notice the altercation, crawling away from the pokemon using his arms, only risking a look back after placing a few feet between them. The Bonsly appeared to be... crying. Why?


From his low vantage and due to the circumstances, Kevin panicked and commanded Shoka to make a poorly considered action: "Ember, now!" He'd thought the creature a grass type from the look of it, and yet when Growlithe's breath scattered a wave of smoldering ash the creature's direction and striking it directly, it showed little regard for what had happened. It tilted its head, vexed by the futility of the attempt, before dealing back an emulation of Shoka's technique. But she remained unfazed—emboldened, even—by the defiant display...


Kevin took a moment to assess what had happened, eyes narrowed on the creature with a hint of alarm, and yet as he observed the pokemon he became quite sardonic with himself; of course the Ember hadn't worked... it was a rock type! Bonsly became Sudowoodo, and those frequently dotted the region of Johto in the most inconveniencing locales, obstructing entire paths once they decided to stubbornly mimic the trees surrounding them. Kevin rolled his eyes, wincing at the twinge in his ankle, before intoning bitterly: "Shoka, use Bite!" His Growlithe grunted apprehensively before charging, finding purchase on the choppy skin of the Bonsly, yowling immediately as the wild pokemon wriggled and flailed about from the anguish. Shit...

Kevin froze from the pangs of guilt crashing over him. Why did he tell Shoka to do that? In the meanwhile the enemy Bonsly didn't relent, rushing headlong towards the canine before slumping to the ground and sliding towards its legs, sending it skyward as the force of the blow connected. "Shoka!" Kevin growled heatedly, bringing his fist to the ground. But the Growlithe wasn't down for the count just yet, rising from where it had fallen, though it visibly staggered. Bonsly advanced...

"REVERSAL, NOW!" Shoka's body braced for the collision, accounting for the Bonsly's strides and placing the brunt of her shoulder deftly against the creature's underside as she ducked low, intercepting it before sending it into the air only for it to plummet towards the ground and smash into a rock. It meekly struggled to rise in a fit before what looked like convulsions wracked its body and it grew still after a few vain attempts at kicking its feet around. Kevin watched it for any developments. Nothing. He sighed in relief, the pretense of worry disappearing from his features before he rose to his height despite his handicap. "S-sorry, Shoka..."


The Growlithe barked once dismissively, and he gave a half-smile for its sake, hobbling towards the treeline with Shoka at his side. From there he could see a building, and beyond that lie Enju City. The Ranger stumbled forward in earnest, meaning to promptly visit their Pokemon Center. They had made it, if only just.