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As Thomas got in close to the rustling in the grass, he would hear something cry out from above. Thomas would turn around and look up, seeing a ferocious-looking Staraptor swoop in to attack him. Thomas quickly rolled to the right, dodging the bird. The trainer would pluck Brutus' Pokeball off his belt, sending out the ferocious panda. Upon being brought out, however, the Pangoro immediately found himself Intimidated by the presence of the avian, his fighting spirit faltering.

"Brutus, keep cool and Bulk Up!", Thomas called out to the Pangoro.

The Pangoro would flex his muscles, hardening and tightening them. While this act would fortify him physically, it still served to help him get back his groove after the Staraptor's appearance threw him off. The Staraptor wasted no time in flying up close to the Pangoro, clawing and pecking at the panda ferociously with Close Combat. The Pangoro could only cry out in pain and desperately attempt to keep the creature from taking out his eyes as it assailed him.

The Pangoro would finally manage to shake off the Staraptor, who dropped her guard in the wake of the assault on the bear. Being scratched up and bleeding, the Pangoro was quite angry. "Bullet Punch then Drain Punch!", called out Thomas. The Pangoro would quickly dash over to the Staraptor, closing whatever distance came between the two, striking her with a quick left jab. As she reeled from the attack, the Pangoro would follow up the attack with a powerful right strike, his fist glowing as it struck her.

The Staraptor cried out before dropping to the ground, her vitality sapped by the vicious strike. And while the Pangoro's wounds remained, the Drain Punch managed to heal off most of the damage done, his deepest wounds becoming shallow in the process.

"You okay, Brutus?", Thomas called out to the Pangoro. Brutus would give him a nod in response. "Good! You did great, bud!", Thomas called out to him.

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tags: @tag
notes: tl;dr

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Moments after the Staraptor went down, the rustling from the grass sounded off again. This time, the source of the rustling was getting closer. Thomas eyed the grass intently, knowing whatever was hidden within was coming out. "Brutus, Bulk Up.", Thomas ordered the Pangoro. The Pangoro nodded, flexing his muscles to harden them, and increase his strength and fortitude in the process.

The three heads of a Dodrio would pop out of the grass, their mouths each glowing with an orb of red, light blue, and yellow energy respectively, before they fired a combined beam at the Trainer and his Pangoro. Thomas would dive to the left, barely avoiding the beam, while Pangoro, who felt the twitch of his sprig, managed to step out of the way of the oncoming attack.

Without missing a beat, the Dodrio would rush out of the grass, lunging at the Pangoro, its beaks spinning around like drills as it attempt to jab the Pangoro. Brutus, thanks to his sprig, would sidestep the attack, responding with a Bullet Punch to its side, followed up by taking a swing at its center head with Ice Punch. The quick punch elicited a squawk of shock and pain, the icy fist colliding into caused it to drop to the ground in a crumpled heap, unconscious.

"That's some fine work!", Thomas called out to Brutus. The Pangoro would respond with a grunt and a thumbs up.

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tags: @tag
notes: tl;dr

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Moments after the Dodrio was brought down, another figure would emerge from the overgrown grass. This time, a green, scarecrow-like creature would lumber towards Thomas and Brutus, firing a volley of Spikes above the two. The spikes would land behind them, effectively cutting off their escape route. The Cacturne would then extend needles from its arm, and take a swing at the Pangoro.

Thanks to his sprig, the Pangoro would step back, out of the way of the Needle Arm that was coming towards him. In retaliation, the Pangoro would cock his fist back, before launching it at the Cacturn. The Drain Punch was glowing with energy as it came towards the Cacturne, who managed to raise his arms up in time to form a Spikey Shield to protect him from the attack. As his fist collided with the arms, the Pangoro let out a cry of irritation, growling as he felt the needles in the arms of his opponent pricking his fist.

The Cacturne would follow this up by swinging his Needle Arm at the Pangoro again. The fact that none of the needles hit his eye was a miracle. The Pangoro let out a roar of rage, before launching a Bullet Punch at the creature's midsection, followed up with a Drain Punch to the face. Before the Cacturne could enact his attempt to give the Pangoro a Sucker Punch, the Bullet Punch hit him in the midsection, causing him to grip his gut instinctively, before taking a Drain Punch Uppercut sent him flying up several feet in the air, before landing to the ground with a harsh thud. The Pangoro, upon absorbing the Cacturne's vitality, would find the wounds he sustained in this battle mostly healed.

The Cacturne lost consciousness before he even hit the ground.

"You okay, Brutus?", Thomas asked the Pangoro, who gave him a nod. "Good, glad you're doing well.", Thomas told the Pangoro, before walking over to the Cacturne. The Grass-type was still alive, despite the harsh landing. Thomas would fish out a vacant Pokeball, tapping the creature with it, and hoping it would stick.

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tags: @tag
notes: Cap attempt on Cacturne