The Start of a Long Road

[Darksol88]

Aden had a way of getting around quickly. He had found himself dancing around the edge near a bridge in his chase, stopping midway into the grass. "There.... ya gonna stop now?" He asked, watching the Pokemon come out into a clearer view. The fluffiness saw a proper reason, looking to be wool. In fact, the Pokemon looked like a sheep... this was a Mareep? Sure, he's seen the entry on it but this thing looked puny to him.

"Uh... good sheep?" Another shock went his way. "Bad sheep. Nidoran, Double Kick." He was a little wary about his command, but Nidoran knew little in the way of ranged attacks. Poison Sting was the best he had for the time, but he didn't want to risk poisoning it if he could help it.  

[Darksol88]

The Mareep was already trying to defend itself, its wool becoming charged. It wasn't able to get it in time for the first kick to land, and flinched from the impact. The pause allowed the second kick to land without incident either, but there was a visible charge by the time Nidoran went back to Aden's side. Direct attacks wouldn't be wise now; it'd be like attacking Nidoran and letting the horn puncture on the way.

"Wait... let's try and keep it in place. Nidoran, run some circles and lay a trap!" If direct attacks were out, Aden thought he could level the playing field and stick it to ranged fighting. He'd have to forget about not wanting to poison it, though, as he watched his Pokemon try to move faster than Mareep could keep up with.

He was able to get a ring punctured in the ground, with each 'hole' looking slightly pointed. They didn't look that unusual, but knowing Nidoran, they were likely traced with his own poison... however, that was all the time he had before the charged electricity was released, zapping Nidoran and sending him back. He staggered from the attack, fighting a sudden spasm and regaining his composure.  

[Darksol88]

"Now... grr." Aden tried to think. There had to be a way to keep things going, hopefully without resorting to a switch. Poliwhirl had the better options for ranged combat, but he wouldn't be able to take on a Mareep quite so well if he was hit. He looked around, to the water's edge. The ground there was rather moist. Maybe a little muddy too... wait.

The idea could've bit him, it was so obvious. That Mareep wouldn't be able to go far if it wanted to do something other than fire bolts. "Wait... yeah... over there! Dig a hole, kick some mud, I dunno."

Nidoran, on the other hand, had access to a crude form of Mud Slap. He still spasmed every so often as he ran, and as he dug and kicked the mud behind him. This, in turn, was worrying Aden a little. Stupid Mareep, must've paralyzed him.  

[Darksol88]

"Alright, alright, just stay calm, I've got this..." Aden said to himself, noticing his worry. He couldn't get too caught up in this. He knew that Mareep wouldn't be able to go far, and the mud surely couldn't help matters.... yeah, he didn't need to do much more, lest he risk overkill. "Yeah."

He called his Nidoran back to stand his ground, and reached into a part of his vest where he'd normally keep various odds and ends... or, he would've if he had anything in there. He hadn't thought about this until now, but it suddenly dawned on him that they never went to the mart. "...Okay, it's not all lost, maybe I can get it to stick with me or something."  

[Darksol88]

"If I can get those spikes out, may- guah!" Aden's train of thought was put onto another rail and sent to an untimely demise when the ball nailed him. "What the heck was-" He wondered what he had done to deserve such a thing, but the reason reached him quickly enough. "...Oh. Okay, that works too, thanks."

He went to pick the ball up, intending to lob it at its more intended target. While this part happened without incident, he didn't count on Mareep's electricity building up and the ball hitting its wool before ever opening up. The result was a ball wobbling about and giving weak sparks from the electricity running its course into the ground.

"...Yeah, I know, we forgot to stop and pick some stuff up. I'll pay you back for that one." Aden finally said, watching as the ball stopped.  

[Darksol88]

"Oh, those? Toxic Spikes. Keep it from moving too much, and to give Nidoran something to aim for with that mud. I thought if I could coat it with that mud after keeping it in place, it wouldn't be able to attack as reliably." Aden explained. "But I thought a Mareep would be the best idea, even if doing extensive training's out."  

[Darksol88]

"I'll try to after Mareep's given a chance to rest and all. Hopefully it'll listen to me a little." Aden said, recalling a certain other Electric Pokemon that was so unruly, that Sol put it into a PC box. Shipping it to Agate would be too good for that one. "But yeah, I was about to ask about that. So sure."