HOME | DD

Description
An Adventure About to Unfold

Trainer Name: Tatsuko

Age: 21

Height: 5 ft 4"

Weight: 130 Lbs.

Hair Colour: Dirty Brown

Eye Colour: Blue

Rank: Novice Trainer

"There," Tatsuko said as she finished inputting the last of her information in her Pokédex while slurping down another mouthful of noodles. She then suffled over to her bedside and placed the hand-held electronic encyclopedia down next to her grey duffel hat, tote bag and other assortment of supplies that she would be needing for her journey.

Leonidus briefly looked up at her in a moment's interest, the Charmander temporarily adverting his attention from testing out the fluffiness of Tatsuko's pillow.

It was roughly mid-afternoon by the time Tatsuko made it to her home along Route 3. The hunger pains she had been fighting off had re-emerged so she prioritized a quick and easy meal for herself as she got her things packed. She planned on heading off before it became too dark to travel.

Tatsuko absentmindedly grabbed the hairband which sat on her bedside table. She tied her wavy hair back into a loose ponytail, allowing her bangs to fall forward before scuttling over to her desk drawer and pulling out an old, dusty town map.  Tatsuko has never travelled beyond Viridian City before, so she was going to need it.

She blew on it, coughing a little and waving her hand as the dust puffed up in her face. She then opened the map and turned toward the bed, laying it as flat as she could so Leonidus could see.

"We're going to be heading here first," She said, pointing to Viridian Forest as the Charmander peered at the map in wonder, "It's not too far and we're sure to run into a good amount of wild Pokémon. Whatd'ya think?"

"Char char!" Leonidus chimed with glee, wagging his tail. Excitement was evident in his eyes as he  seemed to smile at his new trainer.

Tatsuko smiled back at her Pokémon. She had travelled to Viridian Forest before to do some sketch work, but wasn't able to veer off the path to find more Pokémon in the past. Tall grass has always been a major hazard to non-trainers. Individuals careless enough to venture in the tall grass alone and without a Pokémon tend to upset its wild inhabitants, often leading to injury and in some cases, death.

"Well," Tatsuko said, folding the map back up before grabbing her hat and placing it on her head, "I guess we better get going!"

Leonidus cried, happily jumping up and down on the bed. Tatsuko giggled and pulled out Leonidus' Pokéball which she had promptly stashed in her belt pouch after receiving it from Professor Oak. She pressed the centre button to enlarge it and held it out in front of her to recall the expectant-looking Charmander. She hesitated however, a puzzled frown crossing her face. Leo was her first Pokémon, and though it was customary for trainers to carry the creatures in Pokéballs, it just didn't feel right to her to do so at this moment. She wanted to get to know her fiery salamander a little better and felt that confining him would hinder the development of their relationship. Not to mention, Leonidus had a reported history of being temperamental with Pokéballs, so perhaps it would be for the better. It only seemed fair.

She sighed and let her arm fall to her side before smiling at him.

"Say, Leo, would you rather just walk alongside me instead?"

The Charmander beamed. Tatsuko got her answer.

The afternoon remained warm as they made the quick venture into Viridian Forest. Tatsuko was a little anxious at first when she noticed that Leonidus had the tendency to go exploring every new thing he would see. She didn't want the Charmander straying too far just in case he got into trouble. But despite Leo's wanderings, he stayed within proximity of his trainer's sight and she eventually relaxed a little on the matter, occasionally calling out to the Pokémon if she felt he was getting ahead of himself.

Upon entering the brush, however, Leonidus' curious nature ended up becoming more beneficial. His constant nosing around gradually brought the forest Pokémon out into the open which gave Tatsuko a decent advantage for sketch work. Through praise, Leo caught onto this kind of action as a good thing and started to become more bold with his scare tactics. Things were working in his favour until he was hit with a flurry of string-shots after scaring a pod of Caterpie who wouldn't back down. After Tatsuko untangled him from the mess, he reverted back to his slightly more discreet methods.

At one point they stumbled upon a pair of Pikachu playing in a small clearing. Leonidus contently seated himself so close to Tatsuko that he was practically on her lap, just so that he could watch her draw. However, about half-way into the drawing, Leo adverted his attention elsewhere, intently staring into the dark of the forest.

Tatsuko stopped, noting the Charmander's movement and body posture. He had become rigid and focused; something she hadn't felt from him before during this short time.

"What is it?" Tatsuko was concerned. This wasn't a typical display of curiosity from Leonidus. He must have heard or sensed something that she couldn't.

Leonidus didn't acknowledge her. He continued to stare, fixated on whatever it was in front of him. Finally, he emitted a sound that Tatsuko could only compare to a snort, and he crawled over top of her and onto the other side, his lips curled back in a low snarl.

Tatsuko slowly lowered her sketchbook and rose to her feet, now turning her own attention to where Leo's own was. She reached into her back pocket and drew out her Pokédex. She knew that the device had a feature which allowed you to view your Pokémon's attacks, and based on how Leonidus was acting, she gathered a battle might be imminent. She pressed on the button to bring her to her Charmander's summary page. Scratch and Growl were the only attacks he knew at the moment. Those should be simple enough to remember.

A short time passed and there was still no activity. For a moment, Tatsuko considered that perhaps Leonidus had overreacted to the noise of a snapping twig or something, until she heard it.

The sound was low at first, barely audible, but it grew louder and louder as though something was rapidly approaching them. Buzzing. Tatsuko could feel her face grow pale with fear. She recognized that  noise and what Pokémon it belonged to.

The Beedril burst out of the foliage like something out of a horror film. Its speckled eyes seemed to be glaring at Tatsuko and Leonidus. It's rapid motions as it hovered and swerved about indicated that the Pokémon was angry. Tatsuko wondered if they were too close to a nearby nest, figuring that was the most likely thing that could have provoked it to attack.

By this point, Leonidus let out a furious cry as the flame on his tail flared up brighter than usual. Tatsuko took in a deep breath and braced herself. This was going to be her first battle and she needed to be on her toes as best she can for the both of them.

The Beedrill locked its attention of Leonidus and advanced.

"Quick, Leonidus, use scratch!" The command felt forced out to her. She hoped she was doing this right.

Leonidus nodded and dashed for the oncoming Beedrill before jumping up and giving it a good swipe across the face with his claws. The Beedrill recoiled slightly, the fresh gash in its cheek bleeding a little, but overall, Leo's attack seemed to have done very little to damage it. If anything, the bee-like Pokémon was now more agitated.

Beedril then swooped in on the Charmander, its needle-like forelimbs punching back and forth toward him at a rapid pace. Tatsuko guessed that it was Beedrill's Fury Attack, the motion seemed to match the descriptions she had read growing up.

"Leo, dodge it as best you can!"

The little Charmander put his speed to the test. He successfully managed to avoid the first two strikes, but was pommelled horribly by the final three of Beedrill's attack. With Leoniudus now in pain and on the ground, the bee Pokémon now took one of its forelimbs and swiftly smacked the Charmander, sending him careening back toward Tatsuko.

"Are you alright?" She called as she ran toward her fallen partner.

Leonidus staggered to get back on his feet, but once there, he nodded with a defiant "Char!"

"Alright then," Tatsuko breathed, "Let's go get it with another scratch attack!"

Leonidus did so, but this time when he leaped to attack, he overshot the Beedrill and missed it entirely. As Leonudus crashed down on the ground behind it, the bee-like Pokémon instantly rounded on the Charmander and dived, both its points extended out in front.

"Leo, watch out!"

But there was no time for the Charmander to evade the oncoming attack. So, as a last resort, Leo plunged his body onto the ground and braced himself for impact. There was little else he could do.

However, the attack never came. Instead, the Beedrill seemed to back off a little, making odd sounds. When Leo looked back, he noticed that the bee-like Pokémon seemed to be hovering toward him and backing away quickly as though some invisible force was preventing it from getting close.

Tatsuko noticed the change too and after a couple of moments, pieced together the reason why.

"Leo, your tail! It doesn't like the flame on your tail!"

Leonidus had positioned himself in such a way on  the ground that he was presenting his tail toward the Beedrill. The fiery tip was just enough to ward off the bug-type momentarily. The hesitation the Beedrill was displaying must have been a natural instinct to keep from being burned.

Leo flicked his tail toward the Beedrill and sure enough, the Pokémon backed away further again, letting out sharp buzzing noises in fear. The Charmander cried out in triumph and lifted himself to his feet, keeping his back toward the Beedrill and swishing his tail to keep it at bay.

"Awesome job," Tatsuko cried out, pumping a fist into the air. She couldn't believe how exhilarating this was, "Keep that up until you can get in close enough to hit it with Scratch again!"

Leonidus did so. He managed to keep the Beedrill away from him long enough that he was able to quickly get underneath the bug and give it a hearty swipe in its abdomen. The Beedrill convulsed this time. Clearly Leonidus did a fair amount of damage more than with his previous hit. The bug Pokémon then took the bottom half of its body and jabbed its stinger toward him, which, Leonidus promptly veered away from and tumbled to the ground.

The Beedrill rounded on him once more, the spell of caution broken since now it was viewing Leonidus from the front as the Charmander shook its head while standing up to face his foe again. Beedrill once again placed its twin needle arms out in front oand charged at Leonidus with terrifying speed.

The next few moments seemed to play out in painful slow motion for Tatsuko as fear for her Charmander's safety gripped her. She cried out to him, racing toward him as fast as her legs could carry her. She felt heavier than normal. The Beedrill was just moving too fast for her. She wasn't going to get to Leo in time. All she could do now was just watch as her terrified-looking Charmander stood there, just moments away from what could very well be the final move to end the entire battle. Then, in that moment when everything seemed to be for the worst, Leonidus shut his eyes tight and dove out of Beedrill's path, the bug Pokémon crashing into the tree behind him.

The next thing Tatsuko knew, Leonidus had bounded over to her and curled up into the safety of her arms as the heavy thud of the now collapsed Beedrill hit the forest floor. The two stood there a moment, watching as the fallen Beedrill twitched and buzzed unpleasantly on the ground a while before finally lifting itself in the air again and flying away.

There was a pause as the forest seemed to fill itself with familliar sounds again.

"We did it..." Tatsuko stated blankly after what seemed like ages, "We did it. Leo, we did it!"

She laughed in excitement, spinning the Charmander around with her before pulling him into a hug.

"I am so proud of you!" She said, "Our first battle and we won! Granted, that last stunt you pulled there was very brash, but..."

She trailed off, smiling at him while happy tears filled her eyes.

"You are so amazing. I am honoured to have started my first journey with you."

The slightly stunned expression on Leonidus's face after sensing so many conflicted emotions from his trainer turned into one of joyful pride. His mouth opened in a wide smile as he called out to her happily. He admired the praise.

But their celebration would be short-lived. Not too long after, the two of them could hear buzzing again...and this time, it sounded like more than just one. Tatsuko's grip tightened slightly on her Charmander and she opened her mouth to tell him that they should probably leave now, but before she could do anything, a driving force caught her by the collar of her shirt and ripped her from the earth where she was standing. The motion also made her drop Leonidus involuntarily.

The droning sound of buzzing filled her ears as her body smacked repeatedly against teh ground below her. The flashes of yellow and black she would temporarily see above her confirmed her worst fear. More Beedrill had come.

She strained to see where her Charmander was to make sure he was okay, but it was useless. She could barely hear his cries for her above the noise let alone see him. The next thing Tatsuko knew, she was thrown through the air, her limbs waving helplessly before she smacked against a tree squarely on her back. Much to her surprise, however, the tree gave way underneath her, and she fell into the rotted, hollowed inside of the trunk, landing on something jagged and hard. Another sound filled the void around her.

"Kakusssssssshhhhhhhhhnaaaaa..."

The hissing made her shudder as she glanced around her, horrified, noting the displeased Kakuna beneath her.  She struggled to get off of them as quickly as possible, but seemed unable too. If it wasn't for her bare arms, she may not have noticed the sticky substance that the Kakuna had shot at her in defense. She tore at the thread from the string shot to try and free herself, but the more she remove, the more the Kakuna shot at her again to prevent her from moving.

It was in this moment that Tatsuko clearly heard Leonidus call out.

"Chaaaaarrrrrmanderrr!"

She instantly looked in the direction of his voice. It was a terrible sight. The Charmander had finally spotted his master struggling against the Kakuna in the hollowed tree and was desperately trying to make it to her aid as a swarm of Beedrill circled around him, slamming into him and attacking him all the while. Tatsuko had noticed that Leonidus had taken a hefty amount of damage. He was scuffed up and bleeding badly despite his brave facade as he growled and clawed at his attackers.

Tatsuko once again felt the urge to dive in and remove her Charmander from harm's way. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Not at all. She called back to her Pokémon, telling him that she was coming to save him, but the more she struggled against the Kakuna and their onslaught of string-shots, the more it tightened around her and pulled her back. At one point, she pressed all her weight forward to try and pull free of the cocoons' grasp only to have them wrap her upper torso with their sticky string and pull her with so much force that she slammed into them again.

"I'm coming Leo," she called out, tears streaming down her face as her Charmander's cries became more and more muffled by the buzzing of Beedrill, hoping he would hear, "I'm going to get us out of here somehow, I promise you!"

But as her movements continued to become more limited, the thread which binded her started to creep its way up her neck and then around her mouth and nose. While still reaching out toward freedom with what little she had of her free arms left, Tatsuko's vision started to blur.

No, she though, No, I have to fight against it. I am not going to abandon Leonidus. I can't...

Thoughts began to swirl. Nothing seemed clear any more as her lungs continued to be robbed of oxygen. As the constricting substance managed its way over the rest of her face, Tatsuko slowly slipped away into unconsciousness.

Description
An Adventure About to Unfold

Trainer Name: Tatsuko

Age: 21

Height: 5 ft 4"

Weight: 130 Lbs.

Hair Colour: Dirty Brown

Eye Colour: Blue

Rank: Novice Trainer

"There," Tatsuko said as she finished inputting the last of her information in her Pokédex while slurping down another mouthful of noodles. She then suffled over to her bedside and placed the hand-held electronic encyclopedia down next to her grey duffel hat, tote bag and other assortment of supplies that she would be needing for her journey.

Leonidus briefly looked up at her in a moment's interest, the Charmander temporarily adverting his attention from testing out the fluffiness of Tatsuko's pillow.

It was roughly mid-afternoon by the time Tatsuko made it to her home along Route 3. The hunger pains she had been fighting off had re-emerged so she prioritized a quick and easy meal for herself as she got her things packed. She planned on heading off before it became too dark to travel.

Tatsuko absentmindedly grabbed the hairband which sat on her bedside table. She tied her wavy hair back into a loose ponytail, allowing her bangs to fall forward before scuttling over to her desk drawer and pulling out an old, dusty town map.  Tatsuko has never travelled beyond Viridian City before, so she was going to need it.

She blew on it, coughing a little and waving her hand as the dust puffed up in her face. She then opened the map and turned toward the bed, laying it as flat as she could so Leonidus could see.

"We're going to be heading here first," She said, pointing to Viridian Forest as the Charmander peered at the map in wonder, "It's not too far and we're sure to run into a good amount of wild Pokémon. Whatd'ya think?"

"Char char!" Leonidus chimed with glee, wagging his tail. Excitement was evident in his eyes as he  seemed to smile at his new trainer.

Tatsuko smiled back at her Pokémon. She had travelled to Viridian Forest before to do some sketch work, but wasn't able to veer off the path to find more Pokémon in the past. Tall grass has always been a major hazard to non-trainers. Individuals careless enough to venture in the tall grass alone and without a Pokémon tend to upset its wild inhabitants, often leading to injury and in some cases, death.

"Well," Tatsuko said, folding the map back up before grabbing her hat and placing it on her head, "I guess we better get going!"

Leonidus cried, happily jumping up and down on the bed. Tatsuko giggled and pulled out Leonidus' Pokéball which she had promptly stashed in her belt pouch after receiving it from Professor Oak. She pressed the centre button to enlarge it and held it out in front of her to recall the expectant-looking Charmander. She hesitated however, a puzzled frown crossing her face. Leo was her first Pokémon, and though it was customary for trainers to carry the creatures in Pokéballs, it just didn't feel right to her to do so at this moment. She wanted to get to know her fiery salamander a little better and felt that confining him would hinder the development of their relationship. Not to mention, Leonidus had a reported history of being temperamental with Pokéballs, so perhaps it would be for the better. It only seemed fair.

She sighed and let her arm fall to her side before smiling at him.

"Say, Leo, would you rather just walk alongside me instead?"

The Charmander beamed. Tatsuko got her answer.

The afternoon remained warm as they made the quick venture into Viridian Forest. Tatsuko was a little anxious at first when she noticed that Leonidus had the tendency to go exploring every new thing he would see. She didn't want the Charmander straying too far just in case he got into trouble. But despite Leo's wanderings, he stayed within proximity of his trainer's sight and she eventually relaxed a little on the matter, occasionally calling out to the Pokémon if she felt he was getting ahead of himself.

Upon entering the brush, however, Leonidus' curious nature ended up becoming more beneficial. His constant nosing around gradually brought the forest Pokémon out into the open which gave Tatsuko a decent advantage for sketch work. Through praise, Leo caught onto this kind of action as a good thing and started to become more bold with his scare tactics. Things were working in his favour until he was hit with a flurry of string-shots after scaring a pod of Caterpie who wouldn't back down. After Tatsuko untangled him from the mess, he reverted back to his slightly more discreet methods.

At one point they stumbled upon a pair of Pikachu playing in a small clearing. Leonidus contently seated himself so close to Tatsuko that he was practically on her lap, just so that he could watch her draw. However, about half-way into the drawing, Leo adverted his attention elsewhere, intently staring into the dark of the forest.

Tatsuko stopped, noting the Charmander's movement and body posture. He had become rigid and focused; something she hadn't felt from him before during this short time.

"What is it?" Tatsuko was concerned. This wasn't a typical display of curiosity from Leonidus. He must have heard or sensed something that she couldn't.

Leonidus didn't acknowledge her. He continued to stare, fixated on whatever it was in front of him. Finally, he emitted a sound that Tatsuko could only compare to a snort, and he crawled over top of her and onto the other side, his lips curled back in a low snarl.

Tatsuko slowly lowered her sketchbook and rose to her feet, now turning her own attention to where Leo's own was. She reached into her back pocket and drew out her Pokédex. She knew that the device had a feature which allowed you to view your Pokémon's attacks, and based on how Leonidus was acting, she gathered a battle might be imminent. She pressed on the button to bring her to her Charmander's summary page. Scratch and Growl were the only attacks he knew at the moment. Those should be simple enough to remember.

A short time passed and there was still no activity. For a moment, Tatsuko considered that perhaps Leonidus had overreacted to the noise of a snapping twig or something, until she heard it.

The sound was low at first, barely audible, but it grew louder and louder as though something was rapidly approaching them. Buzzing. Tatsuko could feel her face grow pale with fear. She recognized that  noise and what Pokémon it belonged to.

The Beedril burst out of the foliage like something out of a horror film. Its speckled eyes seemed to be glaring at Tatsuko and Leonidus. It's rapid motions as it hovered and swerved about indicated that the Pokémon was angry. Tatsuko wondered if they were too close to a nearby nest, figuring that was the most likely thing that could have provoked it to attack.

By this point, Leonidus let out a furious cry as the flame on his tail flared up brighter than usual. Tatsuko took in a deep breath and braced herself. This was going to be her first battle and she needed to be on her toes as best she can for the both of them.

The Beedrill locked its attention of Leonidus and advanced.

"Quick, Leonidus, use scratch!" The command felt forced out to her. She hoped she was doing this right.

Leonidus nodded and dashed for the oncoming Beedrill before jumping up and giving it a good swipe across the face with his claws. The Beedrill recoiled slightly, the fresh gash in its cheek bleeding a little, but overall, Leo's attack seemed to have done very little to damage it. If anything, the bee-like Pokémon was now more agitated.

Beedril then swooped in on the Charmander, its needle-like forelimbs punching back and forth toward him at a rapid pace. Tatsuko guessed that it was Beedrill's Fury Attack, the motion seemed to match the descriptions she had read growing up.

"Leo, dodge it as best you can!"

The little Charmander put his speed to the test. He successfully managed to avoid the first two strikes, but was pommelled horribly by the final three of Beedrill's attack. With Leoniudus now in pain and on the ground, the bee Pokémon now took one of its forelimbs and swiftly smacked the Charmander, sending him careening back toward Tatsuko.

"Are you alright?" She called as she ran toward her fallen partner.

Leonidus staggered to get back on his feet, but once there, he nodded with a defiant "Char!"

"Alright then," Tatsuko breathed, "Let's go get it with another scratch attack!"

Leonidus did so, but this time when he leaped to attack, he overshot the Beedrill and missed it entirely. As Leonudus crashed down on the ground behind it, the bee-like Pokémon instantly rounded on the Charmander and dived, both its points extended out in front.

"Leo, watch out!"

But there was no time for the Charmander to evade the oncoming attack. So, as a last resort, Leo plunged his body onto the ground and braced himself for impact. There was little else he could do.

However, the attack never came. Instead, the Beedrill seemed to back off a little, making odd sounds. When Leo looked back, he noticed that the bee-like Pokémon seemed to be hovering toward him and backing away quickly as though some invisible force was preventing it from getting close.

Tatsuko noticed the change too and after a couple of moments, pieced together the reason why.

"Leo, your tail! It doesn't like the flame on your tail!"

Leonidus had positioned himself in such a way on  the ground that he was presenting his tail toward the Beedrill. The fiery tip was just enough to ward off the bug-type momentarily. The hesitation the Beedrill was displaying must have been a natural instinct to keep from being burned.

Leo flicked his tail toward the Beedrill and sure enough, the Pokémon backed away further again, letting out sharp buzzing noises in fear. The Charmander cried out in triumph and lifted himself to his feet, keeping his back toward the Beedrill and swishing his tail to keep it at bay.

"Awesome job," Tatsuko cried out, pumping a fist into the air. She couldn't believe how exhilarating this was, "Keep that up until you can get in close enough to hit it with Scratch again!"

Leonidus did so. He managed to keep the Beedrill away from him long enough that he was able to quickly get underneath the bug and give it a hearty swipe in its abdomen. The Beedrill convulsed this time. Clearly Leonidus did a fair amount of damage more than with his previous hit. The bug Pokémon then took the bottom half of its body and jabbed its stinger toward him, which, Leonidus promptly veered away from and tumbled to the ground.

The Beedrill rounded on him once more, the spell of caution broken since now it was viewing Leonidus from the front as the Charmander shook its head while standing up to face his foe again. Beedrill once again placed its twin needle arms out in front oand charged at Leonidus with terrifying speed.

The next few moments seemed to play out in painful slow motion for Tatsuko as fear for her Charmander's safety gripped her. She cried out to him, racing toward him as fast as her legs could carry her. She felt heavier than normal. The Beedrill was just moving too fast for her. She wasn't going to get to Leo in time. All she could do now was just watch as her terrified-looking Charmander stood there, just moments away from what could very well be the final move to end the entire battle. Then, in that moment when everything seemed to be for the worst, Leonidus shut his eyes tight and dove out of Beedrill's path, the bug Pokémon crashing into the tree behind him.

The next thing Tatsuko knew, Leonidus had bounded over to her and curled up into the safety of her arms as the heavy thud of the now collapsed Beedrill hit the forest floor. The two stood there a moment, watching as the fallen Beedrill twitched and buzzed unpleasantly on the ground a while before finally lifting itself in the air again and flying away.

There was a pause as the forest seemed to fill itself with familliar sounds again.

"We did it..." Tatsuko stated blankly after what seemed like ages, "We did it. Leo, we did it!"

She laughed in excitement, spinning the Charmander around with her before pulling him into a hug.

"I am so proud of you!" She said, "Our first battle and we won! Granted, that last stunt you pulled there was very brash, but..."

She trailed off, smiling at him while happy tears filled her eyes.

"You are so amazing. I am honoured to have started my first journey with you."

The slightly stunned expression on Leonidus's face after sensing so many conflicted emotions from his trainer turned into one of joyful pride. His mouth opened in a wide smile as he called out to her happily. He admired the praise.

But their celebration would be short-lived. Not too long after, the two of them could hear buzzing again...and this time, it sounded like more than just one. Tatsuko's grip tightened slightly on her Charmander and she opened her mouth to tell him that they should probably leave now, but before she could do anything, a driving force caught her by the collar of her shirt and ripped her from the earth where she was standing. The motion also made her drop Leonidus involuntarily.

The droning sound of buzzing filled her ears as her body smacked repeatedly against teh ground below her. The flashes of yellow and black she would temporarily see above her confirmed her worst fear. More Beedrill had come.

She strained to see where her Charmander was to make sure he was okay, but it was useless. She could barely hear his cries for her above the noise let alone see him. The next thing Tatsuko knew, she was thrown through the air, her limbs waving helplessly before she smacked against a tree squarely on her back. Much to her surprise, however, the tree gave way underneath her, and she fell into the rotted, hollowed inside of the trunk, landing on something jagged and hard. Another sound filled the void around her.

"Kakusssssssshhhhhhhhhnaaaaa..."

The hissing made her shudder as she glanced around her, horrified, noting the displeased Kakuna beneath her.  She struggled to get off of them as quickly as possible, but seemed unable too. If it wasn't for her bare arms, she may not have noticed the sticky substance that the Kakuna had shot at her in defense. She tore at the thread from the string shot to try and free herself, but the more she remove, the more the Kakuna shot at her again to prevent her from moving.

It was in this moment that Tatsuko clearly heard Leonidus call out.

"Chaaaaarrrrrmanderrr!"

She instantly looked in the direction of his voice. It was a terrible sight. The Charmander had finally spotted his master struggling against the Kakuna in the hollowed tree and was desperately trying to make it to her aid as a swarm of Beedrill circled around him, slamming into him and attacking him all the while. Tatsuko had noticed that Leonidus had taken a hefty amount of damage. He was scuffed up and bleeding badly despite his brave facade as he growled and clawed at his attackers.

Tatsuko once again felt the urge to dive in and remove her Charmander from harm's way. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Not at all. She called back to her Pokémon, telling him that she was coming to save him, but the more she struggled against the Kakuna and their onslaught of string-shots, the more it tightened around her and pulled her back. At one point, she pressed all her weight forward to try and pull free of the cocoons' grasp only to have them wrap her upper torso with their sticky string and pull her with so much force that she slammed into them again.

"I'm coming Leo," she called out, tears streaming down her face as her Charmander's cries became more and more muffled by the buzzing of Beedrill, hoping he would hear, "I'm going to get us out of here somehow, I promise you!"

But as her movements continued to become more limited, the thread which binded her started to creep its way up her neck and then around her mouth and nose. While still reaching out toward freedom with what little she had of her free arms left, Tatsuko's vision started to blur.

No, she though, No, I have to fight against it. I am not going to abandon Leonidus. I can't...

Thoughts began to swirl. Nothing seemed clear any more as her lungs continued to be robbed of oxygen. As the constricting substance managed its way over the rest of her face, Tatsuko slowly slipped away into unconsciousness.