"Nido! Nido!"
After successfully defeating their opponent, Nidoran♂ and Nidoran♀ quickly retreated back to safety.
In the distance, the colony of Raticate had also stopped their commotion. Instead of charging blindly, they began spreading out slowly, step by step, deliberately moving to surround the area. It was clear that they were preparing to launch a coordinated encirclement.
"Lil! Lil!"
Petilil stood in the middle of the battlefield, glancing around warily in every direction. The grassy terrain it had summoned was still expanding outward, covering more and more of the ground beneath them.
"Ralts, Ralts!"
Ralts backed up until it stood right beside Aven, its small body trembling slightly, ready at any moment to use Teleport and whisk him away from danger if the situation became truly desperate.
Because with Ralts here and its Teleport ability available, Aven had nothing to fear from even a massive group attack by the wild Pokémon. This was the very reason why he dared to venture alone into the dangerous depths of the Black Forest.
"Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!"
Finally, the surrounding Rattata could no longer hold themselves back. At the command of their Raticate leader, hundreds of small, purple bodies charged forward from every direction, attacking in unison like a grayish-purple tidal wave.
"Lil!"
Petilil let out a low, steady cry. Immediately, the grasses beneath it surged upward at an incredible speed, thick blades and vines lashing out, wrapping themselves tightly around the first wave of Rattata that had stepped into the range of its Grassy Terrain!
At the same time, a faint green light began to shine from Petilil's small body. Grass energy surged continuously around it, as if the little Pokémon had merged entirely with the forces of nature itself. The surrounding grass became extensions of its own body, controlled as effortlessly as arms and legs.
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh!
The strands of grass twisted and braided together, forming ropes of living vines that coiled swiftly around the squirming Rattata, binding them one by one.
Then, faint green light spread across those grassy ropes, enveloping the trapped Pokémon. Petilil had activated its move—Giga Drain! From every bound Rattata, vitality and stamina were relentlessly siphoned away.
Once the Rattata were completely drained, the absorbed energy merged back into the terrain itself. The grassy field grew thicker, stronger, and tougher, every blade reinforced by that stolen vitality.
"Moth, moth~"
High above, hidden by camouflage, Mothim entered the fray.
It had used Camouflage earlier, transforming its typing into Grass. Now, grass energy flowed across its wings and body. From above, a thick cloud of powder rained down—Stun Spore! Within the domain of Grassy Terrain, the natural power manifested through this exact move.
Over weeks of training, Petilil had mastered the technique of merging with nature, while Mothim had successfully learned to wield Nature Power!
"Squeak Squeak!"
The bound Rattata struggled desperately, trying to break free from the grass ropes.
But once the stun spore settled onto them, their bodies stiffened. Their frantic wriggling grew weaker, slower, until they could barely move.
With the combination of paralysis and Petilil's relentless Giga Drain, the smaller Rattata soon collapsed one after another, losing their ability to fight.
"Squeak!!"
The Raticate leader, watching its companions fall in rapid succession, grew restless and furious.
White light gathered along its enormous incisors as it bit cleanly through the ropes of grass that bound it. With a feral roar, it lunged directly toward Petilil, fangs glinting dangerously.
This Raticate was far stronger than the others—its power had already reached the peak of the intermediate-level, nearly at the threshold of becoming an advanced-level Pokémon.
"Nidoran♂, Nidoran♀, I'll leave that leader to you two!" Aven called out firmly.
The two Nidoran turned their heads, growling back in response. White light flared across their bodies—energy born of emotion itself. The light carried their bond and trust, activating both their Rivalry ability and their move Return simultaneously.
They could both sense the Raticate's overwhelming strength. This was an opponent they would have to face with everything they had.
"Nidoran♂, charge in—use Return!"
"Nidoran♀, cover with Poison Sting!"
At his command, the glow around Nidoran♂ condensed. With a determined roar, it dashed forward at full speed.
"Squeak!"
The Raticate leader was blindingly fast. In an instant, it flashed behind a streak of white light and appeared directly in front of Nidoran♂.
The two Pokémon collided head-on. For a moment they locked in place, but within seconds Nidoran♂ was overwhelmed and sent tumbling backward.
Zrrrch—!
Its claws dug deep into the earth, halting its slide and forcing its body upright once again.
Even though it had reached intermediate-level strength, the gap between it and the Raticate leader was still vast. Even with the blessing of Rivalry and Return, it struggled.
"Squeak!"
The Raticate narrowed its eyes and lunged again, fangs glowing ominously as it prepared Bite.
But before it could close the distance, streaks of violet light rained down—Nidoran♀'s Poison Sting! The poisonous barrage sealed off the path ahead.
Snarling, the Raticate had no choice but to halt its charge and weave through the hail of needles. But by the time it cleared them—
Nidoran♂ was gone.
"Squeak?!"
Its expression darkened. Whipping its head around in every direction, it searched frantically, but the smaller Pokémon was nowhere to be seen.
Then—!
The ground beneath its feet split apart. With a roar, Nidoran♂ burst out from below, claws glowing a vicious purple. It raked across the leader's side, leaving faint glowing gashes that pulsed with toxic energy.
"Squeak!!"
The Raticate yelped in pain, kicking off the ground to slam Nidoran♂ away.
But as it landed, agony surged through its body. From the wounds spread tendrils of purple light, blossoming into blotchy spots across its fur. The poison was spreading—Nidoran♂ had inflicted Toxic!
"Nido! Nido!"
Panting heavily, Nidoran♂ allowed itself a breath of relief.
Using Dig, it had managed to get close unnoticed, and with perfect timing unleashed Toxic, ensuring the leader was poisoned. Both it and Nidoran♀ had mastered the move, their natural Poison typing amplifying its potency even beyond Petilil's.
"Squeak! Squeak!"
Now poisoned, the Raticate grew even more frenzied. Its eyes locked onto Nidoran♂, body flashing white as it charged once more.
Planting its paws firmly, Nidoran♂ braced itself, using Return to defend against the incoming assault.
Boom!
The impact sent it flying again—this time with no chance of resistance.
Alarmed, Nidoran♀ launched another volley of Poison Stings for support. But the Raticate leader, now in a heightened state, ignored the stings altogether, letting them stab into its body without flinching as it barreled relentlessly toward Nidoran♂.
Aven's eyes widened. "So, it had the Guts ability…"
That explained it. Guts allowed a Pokémon's Attack power to skyrocket when suffering from a status condition. Just like his Luxio, this Raticate's power had multiplied the moment it was poisoned.
Nidoran♂ was completely outmatched.
"Nido!"
Nidoran♀ cried out and rushed forward to stand beside its partner.
The two gathered together, their emotional energy surging as they braced for the onslaught side by side. But the Raticate's power was monstrous, its glowing fangs forcing both of them back with sheer strength.
Boom!
Once again, both Nidoran were sent flying.
Without pause, the Raticate leader pounced directly toward Nidoran♀. The small Pokémon lay sprawled on the ground, unable to rise in time. Its wide eyes reflected the bigger Pokémon as it descended upon it—
"Nido!!"
At the last second, a purple blur intercepted. Nidoran♂ threw itself in front of its companion, taking the full brunt of the Raticate's fangs.
"Nido…!"
Nidoran♀'s entire body trembled. Its eyes widened, memories flashing through its mind—memories of the time when human hunters had attacked them. Back then too, Nidoran♂ had stood in front of it, shielding it from death until it could no longer stand…
Boom!!
The brutal impact sent Nidoran♂ flying across the ground. To Nidoran♀, the scene froze in her eyes.
"NIDOOOO!!!"
It let out a cry of anguish, its voice shaking the battlefield.
Then—suddenly—its entire body erupted with radiant white light.
"It's… evolving!" Aven's expression sharpened, then softened into a proud smile. He had long sensed both Nidoran were close to their evolutionary threshold. At last, in the midst of battle, Nidoran♀ had broken through!
"Nido! Nido!"
Its silhouette shifted and stretched, its power expanding as it evolved into Nidorina.
The Raticate leader paused at the surge of energy, its gaze flickering warily.
But before it could attack again—white light flared from the fallen body of Nidoran♂ as well.
Wrapped in a cocoon of light, it slowly opened its eyes. A warm, empowering energy embraced it, carrying it upward toward a higher form of existence.
"Lil! Lil! Ralts, ralts!"
Petilil and Ralts gasped, their eyes wide in awe.
They could both sense it: the two Nidoran were enveloped by a special kind of energy, one that intertwined life force with raw emotional power.
And that intertwined force was driving them toward simultaneous evolution.
"Both of them… evolving together?" Aven murmured in amazement.
(End of Chapter)
TN: About the emotional energy, I'm really sure about it so I'm keeping it that way I thinks its about Friendship due to the move return but I'm not really familiar with it aside from the evolution through friendship so I'm not changing it.