|
Post by Parugi on Nov 5, 2022 14:14:34 GMT -8
IC - Specialty Unit Brigham - VIP Cell Block, The Alamo:
"Cool cool cool," Brigham said, bobbing his head slightly in the awkward silence that followed. "So you, uh . . . keeping up with the news at all?"
IC - Ron Bargra/Shan Mayday - Mt. Silver, Kanto:
Two Rocket Soldiers picked their way through the forested area surrounding Mt. Silver. One, Bargra, was a shorter man with curly black hair and a dark complexion; the other, Mayday, was tall and gangly, lighter skinned with dyed blond hair.
"You know," Bargra said. "Legend has it that these hills are haunted by the victims of a Kantonian serial killer, the elusive Ghost Girl of Victory Road."
"Oh yeah?" Mayday said, unimpressed. This was a common tradition of their relationship, Bargra coming out with crazy stories of ghosts and unsolved murders about wherever they were stationed. Mayday had stopped trying to figure out which ones were real and which were improvised a long time ago.
"They say she was a normal girl until she was experimented on and turned into a living ghost," Bargra said, his voice low and spooky. "No one knows for certain who performed the experiments, but whoever they were, they used her new powers in order to kill their enemies . . . until one day, when the Ghost Girl of Victory Road grew too powerful to control and started acting outside of her programming."
"So, what, she was a ghost girl who was an assassin but also a cyborg?" Mayday said. "Was she a pirate, too?"
"She--no, damn it, you know. Mental programming," Bargra said, all semblance of mystique gone from his voice. "The idea is that she was a government experiment. Damn it, you threw off the vibe I was going for."
"I would apologize but I'm not sorry," Mayday said. "I swear I've heard this exact same sort of thing before, though." He paused. "Wait a second, this is just that conspiracy theory you were spouting about that murder in Lavender Town a few months ago!"
"What? No, it isn't!"
"It is! The Team Liberty fella who got ganked in the memorial building! People were saying that was done by a little girl, too! And then before that you were saying that about the murder victim on Mt. Moon!"
"That's not--"
"Ghost Girl of Victory Road must be taking a road trip across the region these days!"
". . ." They had stopped mid-stride to argue, though by now Mayday grinned in amusement at Bargra, who seemed less than enthused. "I could shoot you and no one would ever find you," he said at last.
"Ah, you wouldn't do that," Mayday said. He continued on. "Anyway, not to freak you out, but looks like there's someone over there." He nodded further through the trees, where a small group seemed to be gathered. As they approached, they saw two other Rocket soldiers leading a woman away from another Rocket soldier and a Scizor. Mayday grabbed his radio. "Yo, team," he said. "How's the hunting going--"
He was interrupted as a large shape in the trees behind him shifted. Luckily Bargra noticed it in time to tackle Mayday to the ground, just as a metal pole swung in a wide arc right where he had been standing. The pole impacted against a tree, felling it in one hit. As the pair rolled to the side, the massive shape of a Meadiant stepped out from the shadows, its wide grin glinting in the sunlight.
Simultaneously, Mayday and Bargra screamed, pointing their guns at the creature and unloading a clip each of ammo at it.
IC - Executive Danielle Ladon - Executive Suites, The Alamo:
"Then we've reached the same conclusion, more or less," Executive Ladon said. She sighed. "So, here's where we're at: I can get James Arthur out of prison. He's all but cleared of having any part in Goldhawk's death. I can also say that we have turned up no further evidence in reviewing Bluefalcon's death that would indicate he had any part in it. At this rate, any backlash from the Executive branch about these findings is something that I can handle fairly easily."
She straightened up in her seat, dropping her feet back to the floor. "Here's the problem. Assuming someone higher up than myself was involved, I do not currently have the power or evidence to go after them. I don't know how long it might take for them to slip and show their hand, but I am certain that sooner or later, they will. Until then, it is imperative that we don't tip our own. Can I trust you and Arthur not to outright pursue any potential culprits until we're certain that we can take down whoever is responsible?"
IC - Ethan Worth/Skye Hall (Torch) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island:
With a proud smile, Ethan returned Paruk to his Poké Ball. He looked around, searching for any change in the environment. Nothing. The temple felt as empty as ever, though perhaps a bit more livened. Pulling another Poké Ball off of his belt, he turned back to Corey.
"I think Tapu Koko could use more convincing!" he exclaimed. With a toss, he released Serena on the field. In the warm climate of Alola, her appearance had changed to her leafy green Summer Form. "Who've you got for round two?"
Skye sighed, moving over to a fallen column and sitting down. "Starting to think we should reconsider this strategy . . ." She looked at Lucia. "You wouldn't happen to have any caffeine, would you? Seems like this might take a while, if it's going to work at all."
|
|
|
Post by Magical Girl Mimi on Nov 5, 2022 14:28:40 GMT -8
-==IC: Corey Bouchard/Lucia Zyther - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island==-
Corey grinned as they reached for their second Poké Ball. "Next up is Boota, my trusty Piloswine. Come on out!" Corey called out as they tossed the sphere forward. The Piloswine appeared in a flash of light, though he seemed a bit confused as to the reason he was called out. For a second, it looked like he would actually just flee behind one of the pillars, but instead he noticed how his opponent was a Sawsbuck. Boota relaxed a bit more, a more confident expression on his face. "Alright, Boota, let's convince Tapu Koko! Let's start off with an Amnesia!" With a couple quick nods, Boota focused and forgot what he was doing. He looked around in confusion, and for a second it looked as if he would just flee behind one of the pillars. With a sigh, Corey placed their right hand to their face and shook their head. "This always happens..."
Lucia glanced back to Skye and looked through her bag for a few moments. "Hm, not really seeing anything-- aha!" She exclaimed as she pulled out an old can of some kind of energy drink. "Got this last week before everything went south; this should hopefully help out, if you're okay with this being the source of caffeine." Lucia sighed however, as she looked back to the battle. "I don't think I ever expected to meet someone who rivals Ethan's enthusiasm in this way though. I'd even say Jamie is rivaled in some ways here. And I never expected them to be the one to do so after how stoic they've been since we met them."
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Nov 5, 2022 15:16:51 GMT -8
IC - Ethan Worth (Serena)/Skye Hall (Torch) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island:
Ethan chuckled. "Alright, Serena, let's remind Boota why we're here!" he said. "Jump Kick attack!"
The Sawsbuck reared back on her hind legs and then charged forward. As she approached the Piloswine, she leaped forward and aimed a powerful kick with one of her hooves at her opponent.
Skye popped the can open and took a sip. "Thanks," she said. "Yeah, this is . . . definitely another side to Corey that we haven't seen. Hopefully they're able to keep it up at the rate Ethan's going."
IC - Sonja Baron - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island:
As luck would have it, good or bad, the team didn't need to make the first move--and neither did Missing Zero's Instances. Sonja's guess about the allied forces had been correct, though not her timing. As they soared above the beach and its resident Bulbug, the group saw a number of individuals running down the beach from the general direction of Seafolk Village. A number of them had already sent out Pokémon, and others were sending out more. As a number of the Bulbug turned to face the new arrivals, a series of attacks erupted from the new party, knocking several of the Instances out of the sky.
In response, there were a number of odd light flashes from within the water. Sonja watched as creatures emerged from the water like zombies from their graves. These Instances elicited a multitude of shrieks and roars as they turned, moving to meet their attackers.
"Looks like we've still got the element of surprise, at least," Sonja said to Colleen. She pulled Ares's Poké Ball off of her belt, releasing the Druddigon into the air nearby. He looked ready to dive bomb into the battle below. "Hold off, Ares! Wait until we're all ready!" She looked back at Colleen. "Ready when you are!"
IC - Kyle Eston (Kitheus) - Guardian Spirit Tapu Fini - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island:
Tapu Fini narrowed her eyes at Evan. 'Second?' she repeated. She held her hands up as the Thunder Wave washed over her; in response, she closed her shell around herself and Refreshed. Do you think this a game? Without opening her shell again, Tapu Fini's form began to spin. As the rotations picked up, becoming more and more rapid, a whirlwind of freezing air whipped up around her. The Blizzard rushed around the room, lowering the temperature all around and chipping at the trainers and Pokémon assembled before her.
As the freezing assault continued, Ren's electrified Quick Attack slammed into Tapu Fini, interrupting her and sending her spiraling backward. She telekinetically steadied herself once more, opening her shell and sending a Hydro Pump toward the Mega Luxray.
As the battle continued, Kyle looked back at Kitheus, doing his best to protect himself from the Blizzard attack. "Alright; Kitheus, Lock-On and fire when ready!" The Magnezone buzzed in response, beginning to charge up a Zap Cannon as it worked to finalize its analysis of Tapu Fini--waiting for the perfect opportunity to attack.
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Nov 9, 2022 11:30:26 GMT -8
IC: Ryan Sanders (Togie) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island Ryan watched with a deep frown as more Instances were summoned in response to the Aether soldiers. “So much for not alerting the main body,” he muttered. “Still, they won’t be expecting an attack from above. Togie, let’s prepare a dive-bombing Sky Attack.”
Concealed behind a cloud, Togie began to glow as he gathered energy for the attack. Ryan glanced back at Ray. “You ready for this?”
IC: Ellen Burks (Symbio/Isabella) - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island Ellen and her Pokémon braced themselves against the harsh Blizzard. While the Light Screen and Lucky Chant provided a barrier against the worst of the freezing winds, it was still a devastating attack.
Isabella in particular shuddered as flecks of ice pelted her small body. Despite her Lucky Chant she felt particularly unlucky that Tapu Fini would choose to retaliate with ice of all things. The leaves on her head started to shrivel up in the wintery winds. She couldn’t even dig a hole in the ground to hide from the cold, for the stone floor of the chamber was too solid. Isabella’s body quickly became covered in tiny frozen crystals, until she became little more than the white silhouette of an Oddish.
At first, Ellen and Symbio thought she had been frozen solid. But the coating of ice shouldn’t have been glowing that brightly, even if it was reflecting the dim light of the chamber. No, the white light that surrounded Isabella was not from the Blizzard, but the power of evolution. Before their eyes the Oddish’s bulbous body doubled in size, sprouting a pair of arms where none had been before. The shriveled leaves on her head wilted away, replaced by a series of budding petals.
As the glow faded, the newly evolved Gloom turned to face Tapu Fini. She was angry about the Guardian’s attack, and now she had the power to do something about it. With a furious battle cry, Isabella spewed a stream of Acid at her opponent from the center of her petals.
“Don’t you see?” Ellen and Symbio cried in unison as they both stretched out a hand toward Tapu Fini. “Even in the face of adversity, even with all the odds against us, we refuse to give up!” Psychic energy formed at both Ellen and Symbio’s fingertips, and they sent a pair of Psyshocks toward Tapu Fini, imbued with the strength of their resolve.
OOC: Isabella: Evolution; Acid > Tapu Fini Symbio: Psyshock > Tapu Fini Ellen (Trainer Bond): Psyshock > Tapu Fini
|
|
|
Post by Magical Girl Mimi on Nov 10, 2022 15:22:18 GMT -8
-==IC: Corey Bouchard(Boota) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island==-
"Boota, dodge quickly and strike back with an Icicle Crash!" Corey called out quickly as they noticed what was going on. The Piloswine, on the other hand, noticed the charging Sawsbuck before he actually heard Corey's comment, so he scampered out of the way of his own free will. He did, however, hear the second part. Boota spun around fast enough to send a dust trail up behind him and then summoned freezing energy around him before he scooted toward the Sawsbuck and leaped toward Serena.
-==IC: Colleen Llyan - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island==-
Colleen nodded as she looked around. A nearby outcrop caught her attention. "Okay, Vivian, if you can stay up there out of sight and try to pick them off from afar, that'd be great. If you get overrun, make sure to jet back to me, okay?" Colleen said to her Clawitzer while Vivian was still inside the Poké Ball. When Vivian acknowledged the plan, Colleen tossed the Poké Ball so that the Clawitzer would land correctly while also letting the ball bounce back to her from the momentum. With that settled, Colleen nodded to Sonja as her aura flared up. She charged an aura sphere up as Orihime began to approach the battleground.
"I'm ready as I'll ever be."
-==IC: Ray Hakuda - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island==-
"Well, no, nothing can ever prepare you for this fight." Ray said with a hint of a mischievous smile. "But I guess by our standards I'm ready. After all, we've gone into so many other things unprepared, for better or worse!" He gripped two Poké Balls as he glanced around at the fighting. "Aizen, Chad, you're both up this time." Ray would monitor the fighting closely, but he wanted to let the Alakazam and Crabrawler to have a chance to shine for once.
-==IC: Jenny Hakuda(Eelite)/Chloe Hikari(Mega!Ren) - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island==-
Jenny growled as she noticed the Thunder Wave not only not have much effect to begin with, but to immediately get refreshed away. The Blizzard chipped away at the Pokémon on the field, which prompted Jenny to worry about her Eelektross, but Eelite withstood the damage, though she looked like she had seen better days after the attack finished up. "Okay, use Wild Charge now!" Jenny called out as she saw the guardian focus on Ren. Eelite growled and surrounded herself in electricity as she launched toward Tapu Fini; Eelite took a chunk of damage as the lightning threatened to singe her too, but she was going to try her best to strike out before fainting if she could.
Chloe winced as she felt the ice pelt at her and her friends courtesy of the Blizzard, but she wasn't about to give up here and now. Ren felt the same way, as she barely stepped to the side of the Hydro Pump with the last bits of speed she had from the Quick Attack. She could feel the force of the potent beam of water and staggered to the side from the air pressure that was sent off from it. "Ren, let's follow up the attack; wait for the attacks to finish, and then strike out with a Wild Charge of your own!" Chloe called out with a bit of worry for all the attacks that were headed Tapu Fini's way. If Ren tried to get in close with all those going on, it was very likely for some accidental friendly fire to happen, so she wanted to cut down the risks of that happening.
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Nov 10, 2022 23:44:23 GMT -8
IC - Ethan Worth (Serena)/Skye Hall (Torch) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island:
Serena's attack impacted on the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust as the cobblestone broke underneath her hoof. Out of the cloud the Piloswine emerged, slamming into her and sending the Sawsbuck skittering across the ground.
"Shake it off, Serena!" Ethan called. "Get some of your strength back with a Horn Leech!"
With a quick shake of her head to clear the dizziness from the hit, Serena charged forward again. This time her antlers glowed as she aimed an energy-draining attack at her opponent.
IC - Sonja Baron - Missing Zero - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island:
With a nod, Sonja looked back to her Pokémon. "Go for it, Ares!" From this position, their group essentially pulled off a pincer maneuver against the Instances, catching them from behind while they were distracted by the other combatants ahead of them. Hopefully that would provide an extra advantage, at least with these first few attacks.
Ares loosed a ferocious roar before tucking his wings in and diving toward the nearest Instance. The unfortunate victim was a Phantashade hovering several yards above the field, a Shadow Ball charging in its claws. The dark energy exploded in its hands as Ares's jaws closed around its neck in a Bite attack; it barely had time to elicit an enraged, ethereal screech before it found its head severed from its shoulders. The sound was enough to draw the attention of several nearby Harpreak, which broke off from their brethren forces to engage Ares.
Sonja pulled two more Poké Balls from her belt, releasing Athena and Neith. "Get ready to support Ares!"
IC - Kyle Eston (Kitheus) - Guardian Spirit Tapu Fini - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island:
Lead with your actions, not your words, Tapu Fini responded. As this latest series of attacks approached, Tapu Fini swung her arms around. A whirlpool of water erupted around her, creating a protective barrier that absorbed the brunt of the attacks. A moment later the whirlpool split off into a series of smaller water bursts, one aimed at each of Tapu Fini's opponents. She looked more worn out now than she had before the barrier went up, but she remained fighting.
"Kitheus, time for that Zap Cannon!" Kyle ordered.
His Magnezone nodded, firing off a powerful burst of electricity just as Tapu Fini sent out her attack. The two attacks passed each other in midair, their elemental energies seeming to disrupt each other's flow of power. As Kitheus took the attack against himself, Kyle watched as Tapu Fini performed a move that he did not realize was even possible: Dodging the locked-on Zap Cannon.
It will take more than a simple trick like that against me, the Guardian Spirit chided. Come now, all of you--prove your worth!
"Prove our worth?" Kyle said. He was beginning to pick something up about this encounter; it made him all the more determined to see it through, and that determination began to manifest in a subtle glow around his Pokémon. "Alright, try this one on for size. Kitheus!"
The Magnezone flew forward, a shell of energy erupting around him. It cracked and then exploded into mist a moment later, revealing his Mega Evolved form. Kitheus's three sections split off from each other, firing off low-powered Supersonics as they went. Though they did not appear to successfully confuse Tapu Fini, the onslaught of sonic energy was enough of a distraction to create an opening for Ren's Wild Charge, which sent the Guardian Spirit reeling from the impact.
She breathed heavily, looking around at each of her opponents--three Mega Evolved Pokémon among them, not unlike her own power. It was time for something more drastic. The group watched as the Legendary Pokémon began to glow, gathering energy within herself for her next attack . . .
|
|
alku
Technician
Posts: 63
|
Post by alku on Nov 11, 2022 6:02:39 GMT -8
IC: Evan Tierra
The Blizzard and the Whirlpool attacks had taken their toll on the elderly Hippowdon, who roared defiantly one last time before fainting. Evan returned her to her Poké Ball, and fell to his knees as he saw the others' attacks caused Fini to glow with tremendous power. Was it meant to be their end? Was it going to be the end of Evan Tierra? As these thoughts raced through his mind, he saw what appeared to be...an inert Z-Crystal? Reaching out for it, Evan attempted to attach it to his Z-Bracelet. When he did, nothing happened. "Nonononono, I refuse to die here, and so helpless and scared to boot." The Hero thought as he grasped the crystal tightly.
"Why are you scared?" A gentle voice queried. After all, you have me. You've always had me."
"Palkia?" Evan thought to the voice.
"Of course not, you silly perso-WAIT YOU CAN HEAR ME?" The voice transitioned from one of gentleness to one beyond Lillipup levels of excitement. "HIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHI! IT'S ME, YOUR LOYAL FRIEND!"
Evan's eyes widened as he realized who was speaking to him. "Gnip!? it's you?!
The one and only! But seriously, why are you afraid? You've faced far scarier foes and never backed down. Why should this be any different? Gnip projected confidently. "You have me, so let's do this, as we always have: together, my mas-no. My friend."
Standing up, Evan sent out Gnip, who looked back at him approvingly, and growled. "Thank you, Gnip." Evan said, tearing up as a big grin crawled across his face. "Let's do this together." As he spoke, a small flash of light emitted from the inert Z-Crystal in his hand, which now shone the same amethyst hue of a Garchomp's scales. Inside was the symbol of what appeared to be the star marking on said Pokémon's face, which shone a dull yellow. A series of poses flowed through Evan's mind as he grasped the crystal tightly. It was time to show Tapu Fini who she was messing with.
IC: Evan "Arceus-damned" Tierra
"I'M SORRY, TAPU FINI, BUT I HAVEN'T THE TIME FOR YOUR GAME." Evan Tierra said in a triumphant voice as Gnip roared at the Guardian Deity. "SEE, EVEN IN THE FACE OF CERTAIN DEATH, I SHALL STAND MIGHTY AND TALL, ALONGSIDE MY FRIENDS. ALLOW ME TO SHOW YOU WHAT -I- AM CAPABLE OF!"
Evan latched the Z-Crystal to the Bracelet, which then started shining brighter and brighter. Evan then struck a pose pointing to the left, then right, then to himself. Finally he pointed skyward, then to Tapu Fini.
"Z-MEGA RESONANCE MOVE: EVAN AND EARTH!"
In a flash of rainbow light, Gnip had transformed into her Mega-Evolved state, but then shone brighter and brighter as Z-Power beyond measure flowed into her. As it did, she roared louder and louder, causing the very earth to rumble and shake violently. As this happened, what appeared to be light projections of -all- of the Pokémon Evan had owned appeared, who then started to cheer for Gnip. As the Dragon's roars echoed in the chamber, Evan began to shout. "I AM THE HERO OF SPACE." The Hero shouted in a defiant voice. "ONE OF THE MANY HOPES OF THIS WORLD, AND AMONG THE LAST! NOW, GNIP!"
At Evan's command, Gnip rushed forward and slashed with her large scythes, unleashing blades of light infused with Ground-Type energy almost too blinding for the eye to comprehend...
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Nov 11, 2022 9:36:21 GMT -8
IC: Ryan Sanders (Togie) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island From a distance Ryan saw Sonja’s Druddigon dive down to attack. It was time. Ryan leaned forward and gripped Togie’s feathers with a grin. “You might want to hold onto something,” he warned Ray.
The next moment Togie leaned into a dive bomb, glowing brightly with the stored up power of his Sky Attack.
Ryan’s stomach lurched, but as they quickly approached the horde of Instances his eyes darted about for the perfect target. There! A Driprown had just reared its head out of the water and was aiming at one of the Aether soldiers. Ryan directed Togie’s attention towards the Instance, and his Pokémon adjusted their flight pattern accordingly.
To anyone watching it might have looked like the group was about to plummet straight into the shallow waters off the coast. Then at the last possible fraction of a second the Togekiss careened upward, his sharp talons shredding through the Driprown like a bullet.
“Whoo!” Ryan cried as they shot back up into the sky. “I could do this all day!”
A sudden blast of Hurricane-strength winds blew them off course, forcing Togie to fight to remain upright.
Ryan glanced behind them and found a number of Harpreak had followed them into the sky. “Looks like the fun police is here,” he muttered as Togie flew in a wide arc to face these new enemies. “Think they’re mad about their sea serpent friend?”
IC: Ellen Burks (Symbio/Isabella) - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island Ellen and Symbio braced themselves as Tapu Fini prepared for a powerful attack and Evan responded with one of his own. The trainer and Pokémon raised their hands to create a Reflect, adding to their defensive measures in the midst of such power.
Isabella took a step backward. The Blizzard had weakened her significantly, more than Ellen and Symbio had realized. Even with the added strength of her evolution, she balked at the sight of her Legendary opponent.
“It’s alright, Isabella,” Ellen and Symbio assured her. “Go ahead and use Ingrain for now.” They knew it was a risky strategy. While Ingrain would restore her strength, the roots digging into the soil would tie her down and prevent her from dodging attacks as easily. Nevertheless, Ellen and Symbio felt like they could adequately defend their partner, and so the Gloom sent a series of roots digging through the stone floor of the chamber and into the soft soil below. Already Isabella looked rejuvenated. Ellen and Symbio took up a position in front of Isabella, hoping to defend her against whatever Tapu Fini unleashed next.
OOC: Species: Gloom (female)
Nickname: Isabella
Trainer: Ellen Burks
Appearance: She doesn’t drool as much as most Gloom
Personality: Isabella retains the bashful nature she had as an Oddish, having become more self-conscious of her clumsiness. She seems to be more aware of her clumsiness and would rather hide out of sight than risk messing up. Her self-consciousness extends to her trying not to drool as much as most Gloom do. Ability: Chlorophyll
Specialty: She can be very fast, especially when her ability Chlorophyll kicks in. Perhaps she is almost too fast, which may be the cause of her clumsiness. Her speed can also be a problem when she uses Ingrain, as the move roots her to the ground.
Known Moves: Absorb, Sweet Scent, PoisonPowder, Sleep Powder, Lucky Chant, Ingrain (egg move), Acid, Mega Drain, Moonlight
Number of Battles: 15 (Opelucid Warehouse (x2), Giant Chasm 2 (x2), Burks House (x2), OAT (x3), Shadow Suits (x4), Tapu Fini (x2))
New Moves: Acid, Mega Drain, Moonlight
|
|
|
Post by minun4 on Nov 11, 2022 15:01:52 GMT -8
IC: James Arthur - VIP Cell
Shame. Brigham didn’t take the bait. James didn’t let his disappointment show, but he really wished he’d taken it. Best not to force the issue. He took his seat and faced Brigham. “I have barely heard anything,” James said, shaking his head. A half-lie. There was only so much he could glean from his limited means. And Brigham didn’t need to know what he’d been getting up to. “Only what I could get out of Executive Ladon.” James paused for a brief moment and then asked, “Tell me, how did everyone respond to the news about the attack?”
IC: Amanda Zarth - Executive SuitesAmanda needed more time to think of a response than what she had. She had a lot to consider. What the cost would be for letting the culprit remain at large versus the cost of botching a confrontation. Team Plasma’s interest and the public interest, in Unova and globally. She flipped through documents on her tablet, quickly running out of documents about the case and increasingly running into updates about the war effort. She eventually had to conclude that Executive Ladon was correct. “If Executive Arthur is released then yes, I won’t press the issue further until such a time, “ Amanda said. “I can’t speak for Executive Arthur. But if he didn’t grasp the severity of the situation, I don’t believe he would’ve allowed himself to be arrested with as little protest as he did.”
IC: Lohe Mahina - Lake of the Moone
Lohe began to really wish Nosferatu was still ready to fight. Ruthven was outgunned with a number of Plite focusing on him. He had to recast Tailwind to provide himself the speed to evade incoming Moonblasts. He had little opportunity to actually attack back. Nosferatu could have kept the Plite off Ruthven’s back. Lohe needed to move the battle to the meadow, so he could properly join the fray. The Skull Grunts were one thing. He could probably get them to leave. The issue was the Nihilego. Lohe had no intention of letting Missing Zero get its hands on the Ultra Beast. But it wasn’t like it was going to obey his orders either.
As Lohe pondered the problem, a Devagore raised a hand pointed at Ruthven. A second larger hand appeared before Ruthven. Ruthven let out a brief shriek of surprise and the hand pressed down on his head. As the hand pressed onto Ruthven, he felt his body slowing. Two of the Plite grabbed Ruthven’s wings while two more popped in front of Ruthven. The two in front built up Moonblasts with lethal intent.
Lohe was about to panic when his ears picked up on the sound of a rocket approaching from behind him. The rocket wooshed right past Lohe, a figure dropping from it as it did. The rocket came into focus as a Golurk heading straight for the Plite in front of Ruthven. The Golurk grabbed both Plite and shut off the thrust keeping him in the air. The two Plite discharged the Moonblasts, striking the Golurk but not deterring it. As the three fell towards the lake, the Golurk began to glow with a yellow aura. He placed the two Plite to his chest. As they crashed into the arena, the Golurk bore his weight down on them with Heavy Slam, crushing them both beneath him.
Lohe recognized the Golurk. His name was Frankenstein. What he didn’t recognize was the face of the man who had ridden him. That didn’t mean Lohe didn’t know who the man was. Lohe couldn’t bear to look at that face.
“I see that I’m not too late,” the other Lohe Mahina said.
Merida’s Force Palm struck Kauhi dead-on. However, a blunt physical Fighting Type attack was the exact sort that vampires were strongest against. Even in the fading light of the accursed sun, they were unfazed by the Meditite pressing her palm into them. Kauhi was pushed back by the palm, but simply grabbed Merida by the wrist and tossed her aside. They would not be stopped here. This was the moment. The moment everything their people had been waiting for centuries. All they had to do was throw this one ball and everything would change. Kauhi wound up their arm, and with vampiric strength threw the first and most important PokeBall of their life.
Their aim was just a bit too high.
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Nov 14, 2022 16:46:12 GMT -8
IC: Z-Warrior Zoe Llyan/Beast/Bully/Trigger/Tracer/Drifter/Snake - Lake of the Moone, Ula’ula Island “You sure you want me to keep sitting this one out?”
Trigger’s question burned into Snake’s mind as he watched a giant Golurk fly into battle. “Where do all these guys keep coming from?” he muttered.
“So is that a yes or a no?” Trigger asked impatiently.
“See if you can take out some of those weird pink things,” Snake answered, pointing to the creatures that had turned Tracer’s Krookodile against him. “Do not let it get out of control. I don’t want any more friendly fire.”
“Thunder ain’t the only thing up my sleeve,” Trigger said with a grin. “You hear that, Tokahiko? Rock Blast those winged creeps!” The Alolan Golem nodded and rapidly fired off a barrage of stones.
As one of the angel-like monsters fell, Crocjaw shook his head. The Sand Tomb that held Tracer began to dissipate. Seeing this, Snake called out to his own Pokémon. “Riiona, Brine!”
The unaffected blob of Wishiwashi turned toward the flying creatures and sent several tiny blasts of water at them. It wasn’t as powerful as an attack with the whole school, but it still managed to fell a few. Freed from whatever trance they were in, the remaining Wishiwashi rejoined their brethren, adding to the strength of their attack.
By now, Bully’s Turtonator had recovered and was back on his feet. “The Ultra Beast is distracted,” Bully said. “Do we still target it?”
Indeed, the Symbiont was busy spewing poison at the angels and devils that had descended from above. Snake shook his head. “We need to get out of here and regroup,” he said. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but it’s not our fight.”
“So we need a distraction.” Bully nodded. “Kino, Shell Trap!” The Turtonator dove into the middle of the fighting and retreated into his spiked shell and waited. “Better get our people fast,” he said.
“Tracer!” Snake called out. “Get Z and the others!” Tracer had just come out of the Sand Tomb and looked around the battlefield in a slight daze. Then his eyes fell on Zoe who was currently being assaulted by someone.
If Zoe thought the person confronting her was a creep before, her thoughts were confirmed when they tossed Merida aside like a rag doll and proceeded to throw a Pokéball at Zoe. Or perhaps they were aiming at the small creature in her arms, but the capsule smacked Zoe right in the middle of her face.
She stumbled back towards Drifter and Beast. “Ow! What the heck, man? You can’t just go around throwing balls at people!”
“Yo, who is this creep?” Drifter got to her feet and moved in front of Zoe as the weirdo lunged at them. “I don’t know who you think you are, but I won’t let you lay a finger on—“
Many things happened at once. The silent creep dove to the ground and scooped up the Pokéball in their hands — evidently they’d been lunging at the ball, not at Zoe. Just as their fingers closed around the ball, Crocjaw slammed into them from the side, sending them sprawling.
“You guys alright?” Tracer panted from his sprint across the battlefield. “Snake says it’s time to skedaddle.”
Zoe nodded shakily. Drifter knelt once more by their companion. “Beast, can you stand?”
“I’m . . . alright . . .” Beast put a hand to his side where the Symbiont had grabbed him. He grimaced as he looked across the battlefield to where their teammates stood by the trees. Painfully he pushed himself up.
“Don’t push yourself!” Drifter put an arm around him and helped him to his feet. His Bewear supported him from the other side with a worried look on his face.
“Ah, crap, this guy just doesn’t give up!” Tracer cried.
The four Skull grunts looked back. The weirdo had scrambled to their feet and taken careful aim with their Pokéball once more. This time when they threw, the ball arced straight towards the creature in Zoe’s arms. Crocjaw started to charge at the creep, but the ball had already been thrown. Merida dove to try and intercept, but fell short.
Zoe let out another shriek. The creature in her arms screamed in terror. Then, before their eyes, the creature began to glow.
A white light enveloped the nebulous Pokémon, spreading to Zoe, Drifter, Beast, Tracer, Pea-Tupato, Merida, and Crocjaw. The light grew brighter and brighter, until it was almost blinding.
And then it was gone, along with the four Skull grunts and their Pokémon. The Pokéball struck the dirt and sprung open, but there was nothing left for it to capture.
From the treeline, Bully swore loudly. Trigger looked around in a panic. “Where’d they go?”
Snake narrowed his eyes at the spot where they’d disappeared. “That was a Cosmog Z had,” he said softly. “And it just used Teleport. They could be anywhere in the world right now.”
IC: Z-Warrior Zoe Llyan/Beast/Tracer/Drifter - ??? One moment they had been standing on the shore of a lake in a forest clearing, surrounded by a myriad of strange people and creatures locked in a fierce battle. Now they were standing ankle deep in a snow drift on the side of a mountain, getting pummeled by a harsh wind. The sun had already disappeared behind the mountain peak, casting them all in a long shadow. None of them were prepared for winter weather and the sudden chill sent a shock to their bodies. Pea-Tupato quickly moved to shield the group from the worst of the winds, but the assorted Skull grunts remained chilled to the bone.
Drifter immediately rounded on the small creature in Zoe’s arms. “Bring us back!” she demanded. “We’ll all freeze to death before we get off this mountain!”
But the small creature slumped against Zoe and closed its eyes. “I think he’s asleep,” Zoe said, watching the creature’s body rise and fall with its rhythmic breaths. “Teleporting must take a lot out of him.”
“Well that’s just great!” Drifter threw her hands in the air. “He’s doomed us all, and then decides to take a nap!”
“But where . . . are we?” Beast asked, leaning heavily on his Bewear for support.
“Somewhere in the snowy mountains,” Zoe observed. “Johto’s Mount Silver, perhaps? Or maybe near Mamoswine Road in Kalos? The types of wild Pokémon in the area might tell us something about where we are.”
Beast started to panic. “Johto? Kalos? How the heck are we supposed to get home?”
“We’re still in Alola,” Tracer said, pointing off in the distance. “Look at that peak over there. That looks like Mount Hokulani. That means this is Mount Lanakila.”
“So we’re still on Ula’ula . . .” Beast winced as he twisted his body to look around. “We didn’t teleport very far.”
“You mean there’s ice and snow in Alola?” Zoe said, unconvinced. She hugged the small creature closer to her chest as she shivered against the cold. “I thought this region was supposed to be a tropical paradise.”
“Tropical, yes,” Tracer explained. “But get to a high enough altitude and you’ll get snow even in a naturally warm place like Alola.”
“Aha! Over there!” Drifter pointed up the mountain. “Looks like a cave that can shelter us overnight.”
“You want us to go up?” Beast squinted at the cave Drifter had mentioned. He could barely make it out in the dying light. “We’ve got to go down the mountain if we want to get back to the others.”
Drifter gave him a hard look. “Mountains are dangerous enough at night. One misplaced step and you could find yourself tumbling off a cliff. Mount Lanakila can get to subzero temperatures within a few hours after sunset. If you’re lucky enough not to fall to your death you’ll catch hypothermia before the night is through. Our only hope is to find shelter in that cave, and we don’t have long before we lose what little sunlight we have left.”
“She’s right,” Tracer added. “My gran warned me against going up Mount Lanakila, especially at night.”
Zoe quickly called Merida back to the safety of her Pokéball, then knelt in the snow. With hands that were shaking from the cold, she searched through her bag for an empty Pokéball. Finding one, she pressed it against the small creature that had teleported them here. With that taken care of, Zoe stood back up and looked at the others. “I don’t care where we go. Anywhere’s better than here.”
“Follow me,” Drifter said, leading the way up the slope.
|
|
|
Post by Magical Girl Mimi on Nov 14, 2022 18:39:52 GMT -8
-==IC: Corey Bouchard(Boota) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island==-
"Boota, dodge it!" Corey called out, though their command came a bit too late. The Horn Leech struck well enough that Boota felt his strength getting sapped. In response, the Piloswine began to channel white energy around himself as he retaliated with a point-blank Double-Edge. He tried to gather more freezing energy for another Icicle Crash, but he wasn't sure if he could get off the attack this time before Serena tried for another strike. Still, Boota tried to get a bit of distance between the two of them while he tried to figure out a way to attack Serena once again.
OOC: Boota: Double-Edge > Serena
-==IC: Ray Hakuda - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island==-
Ray chuckled as he turned to look at the Harpreak, pigtails fluttering in the wind. "Definitely seems like it! That's okay though; can you get us a bit closer to the ground?" Ray asked as he moved to hold both capsules in his left hand. With his right, he drew a card from a pouch on his waist. "This is gonna be messy unless I can send out Aizen and Chad..." He mumbled under his breath, then peered down to see how far up they were still. He watched as Togie made a dive to evade the Harpreak - this worked out, as Ray dropped the two capsules before they could all fly back up; he barely caught the Poké Balls as they bounced back and the two Pokémon inside began to strike out with their respective attacks. However, he quickly pocketed them as he looked to the Harpreak with a determined look. "Hey feather faces, eat this!" Ray called out as he gripped the card with his second hand and ripped it.
Four magical circles appeared in the air that Togie passed through: they pointed toward the Harpreak that were on their tail. Ray averted his eyes for a moment as a blinding flash was let loose from the magical circles as streaks of lightning flew horizontally through the sky with a loud crack of thunder to accompany it. Ray's fingers brushed past his orange hair as he gripped his ringing ears gently. He hadn't used that card's power before - note to self: bring earplugs. He then looked back to see just how many of the flying monstrosities he had managed to take down.
OOC: Alakazam and Crabrawler enter the fray.
-==IC: Colleen Llyan(Vivian) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island==-
Colleen watched as a Dramalgon stepped toward one of the reinforcements and let out a roar of challenge. Moments later, the ground in front of it was pierced by a thin laser-like bolt of energy that seemed to originate from a new hole in its chest. The Dramalgon seemed extremely confused and hesitated long enough for the foe it was facing to finish the work that Vivian started. Colleen nodded in acknowledgement to her Pokémon before she turned and fired off an Aura Sphere toward one of the Harpreak that were trying to attack Ares. With a frown, Colleen looked to Sonja. "Should we stay in the air?"
OOC: Vivian: Dragon Pulse > Dramalgon
-==IC: Jenny Hakuda(Eelite)/Chloe Hikari(Ren) - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island==-
"Lead with my actions huh? Prove our worth?" Jenny's hand clenched as she withdrew Eelite, who had finally taken enough of a battering from the whirlpool water blasts to faint. The next Poké Ball was a surprising one as Jenny's Emboar appeared with a roar that the Fire-type cut off with a look of pure confusion as she looked back as if Jenny had completely forgotten the type they were up against. However, Jenny instead lifted her arm as a glint of a crystal was visible inset into the Z-Ring she had gotten a few months ago. This was going to be tough, but Jenny closed her eyes and visualized the pattern that she would need to use. She wasn't completely sure how this would go. Maybe it just wouldn't work. But she visualized herself tracing the pattern that she had learned for the Fire-type Z-Move. She made her body do as much of the movements as she possibly could, and attempted to channel the energy just the same. It looked fluid enough and the energy seemed to transfer at the end, but it didn't feel as strong as the time before.
The Emboar felt the power flow through her as the damp rocky chamber felt like it threatened to engulf her at any moment. But she focused on the power - Boarlite was entrusted with this power, and regardless of how the fight would go after this, she wanted to live up to it. Boarlite gathered the flaming energy around herself - while before it was launched out like a giant fireball, she felt like it would be more easily channeled into a strong attack if she utilized it as she would her Flare Blitz attack. Even to Boarlite, the energy felt blazing hot - she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not, but she began to rush toward her foe with the appearance of a blazing fireball. With another roar, Boarlite moved to slam into Tapu Fini and aimed to transfer all of the fiery energy in one strike.
Chloe watched what Evan and Jenny both did with a stunned look. This is the power of Z-Moves? She wondered in awe as the power exuded from the two of them felt almost overwhelming. Chloe shook her head as she looked toward the rest of the fight. Ren had landed her attack before - and it looked like it had been pretty effective - but she was certainly looking pretty damaged and shaky from the attacks that were building up. Chloe prepared Allie's Poké Ball just in case it was needed, ready to recall Ren the second things were needed. "Ren, use another Quick Attack to keep Tapu Fini distracted!" With a nod, the tired and injured Luxray attempted to build up crackling speed once again, though she definitely wasn't looking as fast as she had before.
OOC: Boarlite: Inferno Overdrive > Tapu Fini Ren: Ion Infused Quick Attack > Tapu Fini(Distraction)
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Nov 15, 2022 12:49:35 GMT -8
IC - Specialty Unit Brigham - VIP Cell Block, The Alamo:"Well, a lot of the non-combat personnel were pretty freaked out for a bit," Brigham said, perking up at this much more interesting topic. "Some people thought it was the beginning of an M0 invasion, but then I think it kind of settled in that they were isolated fights. Probably helps that there haven't been any other break ins since then. Also it seems like all of the kids that were involved in the stuff with Ford went off-island on this new R.A.L.L.Y mission so I don't think it's lost on folks that those guys who broke in were after them specifically, so there's been a bit of a lighter atmosphere the past few days from that. Oh, and we got confirmation that the kids, like the Alaric kid, the ones who got teleported out from their fight are okay so that's been good. So yeah, kind of a lot going on, stress levels high and low kind of depending on who you're talking to, but right now we're all just kind of keeping an eye on things and seeing how they shake out, you know? And that's actually kind of why I'm here cuz you remember how there was a fight down here, right, well Executive Ladon wanted to post some extra protection in the VIP Cells since the normal-rank guys dropped the ball last time and I figured, hey, I'm new and could use the experience why not volunteer, so when she put out the notice that we'd be doing extra shifts I jumped right on that, I mean it's not every day that you get to post guard in the VIP Cells, right, so anyway I put my hat in the ring . . ." He continued on. IC - Executive Danielle Ladon - Executive Suites, The Alamo:That answered seemed to satisfy Ladon. She stood up, pocketing her access card and comm. "Alright," Ladon said, already moving to the door. "Then I think a trip to the cellblock is in order. Care to join me?" IC - Ethan Worth (Serena)/Skye Hall (Torch) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island:Serena reeled from the Double-Edge. Even with the energy she had just stolen, she was looking rough, so it was now or never. "Meet him with another Jump Kick, Serena!" Ethan called. "Let's make this one count!" As Boota charged his Icicle Crash, Serena gathered her strength for a Jump Kick with which to meet him. The two Pokémon's eyes met. With a burst of strength, Serena kicked off, aiming another slam of her mighty hooves against Boota. However, the Piloswine did indeed have the advantage of distance. As Serena crested through the air, the icy power of his attack slammed into her, throwing her aim off and causing her to slam painfully into the ground. She loosed a defeated whine before fainting. "Aw, man," Ethan said, recalling his Pokémon back into her ball. "Well, that was a good showing anyway! I think that puts us at one-one! Now how's our spectating Guardian Spirit doing?" The group looked around. Somehow the room seemed to be even brighter than it had been after the last round; as they focused on their surroundings, it was almost as if an electrical current had begun to run through the energy. The latent energy in the air made the hair on the back of Ethan's neck stand up in excitement, and Skye could feel some sort of presence building in the temple. At the moment, however, there was still no sign of Tapu Koko--although, for a brief moment, Skye could not help but think that the strange rooster-like visage atop the totem pole was trembling. "I've got one more in me if you do!" Ethan said to Corey, pulling out Tox's Poké Ball and sending out the Beedrill. "What do you say, Tox? Ready to go all-out and show this Tapu Koko fella what we're really capable of?" The Beedrill buzzed loudly, clanging his stingers together in challenge. IC - Sonja Baron - Missing Zero - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island:"Uh . . ." As Ares continued to battle against his feathered foes, at least two of them peeled off from the fray to target the flying nuisances that were Sonja and Colleen. "Yeah, if you don't mind dropping me at least, I can do some ground work!" As Orihime dipped toward the ground, dodging several Gust attacks from the pursuing Harpreak, Sonja expertly slipped off of the Togekiss's back, landing heavily in the sand. One of the two Harpreak again peeled off, targeting the now-landbound target. As its feathers began to glow with a Wing Attack, it was intercepted midair by Neith and Athena. The Tranquill screeched as she slammed her talons into the Hapreak's body with a Quick Attack, throwing it off-course in midair and forcing the two into a tumbling airborne mess. The larger Instance managed to spin and throw Athena away from itself, just in time to bring a foot forward and catch Neith with its talons as the Noibat attempted to send a Gust its way. "Neith!" Sonja cried. Alarm turned to anger as she clenched her fist. "LET HIM GO!" Something within the Noibat clicked. As Sonja watched, a bluish-white light enveloped the little bat Pokémon, and in mere moments his form had grown to become something much larger. When the light faded, claws that had seconds ago encompassed the entirety of his body now clung loosely to the tuft of fur on the newly-evolved Noivern's chest, barely registering as a threat to Neith. With a roar, Neith unleashed a point-blank Boomburst that all but popped the Harpreak where it floated, scattering feathers and essence into the wind. "Wow," Sonja said, struck by quiet awe. She smiled, thrusting a fist into the air. "That's what I'm talking about, Neith!" The Noivern flew down to meet her, nuzzling his much larger head against her own. A flutter of wings to their side let them know that Athena was okay; Sonja pulled back from Neith to give them both a quick snack, petting each of their heads. "Come on, let's go help Ares!" The two Pokémon nodded, following after Sonja as she headed toward the main center of combat. OOC:Species: Noivern. Nickname: Neith. Trainer: Sonja Baron. Appearance: Standard for a Noivern. Personality: Though still socially timid, Neith is a courageous and fierce fighter with strong protective instincts. He has certainly gained new confidence with his evolution, but nonetheless remains somewhat shy off the field. Ability: Infiltrator. Specialty: Neith's evolution has greatly increased his speed and special attack power. Known Moves: Gust, Hurricane, Agility, Supersonic, Roost, Boomburst, Outrage. EXP: 11 IC - Kyle Eston (Kitheus) - Guardian Spirit Tapu Fini - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island:The sudden eruption of power threw off Tapu Fini; as the energy of nature itself coalesced into her hands, she struggled to hold on to it as Gnip charged forward, slashing again and again and again with her blades. Some Tapu Fini was able to block; some hit her shell; but just as many hit her main body, rapidly building damage on her. Just as Gnip finally pulled back, giving her a moment of reprieve, she found herself shrouded in fire from Boarlite's attack. Amidst the inferno, the Guardian Spirit could not help but smile. An invigorating battle, she mused to herself. How I have missed this . . .She clapped her hands together, unleashing Nature's Madness in a blast that swept across the entire temple and knocked all who bore witness to it off of their feet. Smoke, dust, and mist mingled together in the air, creating a thick haze nearly impossible to see through as each of Tapu Fini's opponents struggled to catch sight of her again. As Kyle pushed himself back to his feet yet again, he peered forward, searching for her. Soon the cloud began to disperse and she became visible again, floating in the air toward the middle of the battlefield. She panted hard, seeming to struggle with each breath. Finally, she grimaced, her body going limp as ribbons of energy briefly surrounded her. When they faded, the Guardian Spirit of Poni Island had reverted to her normal form, before swiftly dropping to the ground, nearly unconscious. "Tapu Fini!" Kyle pushed forward, dropping to the side of the Legendary Pokémon. Behind him, he felt his connection with Kitheus fade as the same ribbons of energy reverted the Magnezone back to normal. Kyle searched in his bag, pulling out a Sitrus berry and offering it to Tapu Fini. She weakly ate it, absorbing its healing energy and managing to sit up. "Are you okay?" Yes, I am, Tapu Fini answered. You are . . . formidable opponents. She directed her gaze around at the group, settling for a moment on each one of them. In the face of my power, each of you stayed strong in your resolve and determination. Even in the face of death, you have not wavered . . . Tapu Fini frowned. I see now; I should have realized earlier--you have faced the specter of death itself time and time again. It looms over you, an unrelenting stalker within each of your pasts."You could say that," Kyle said sadly. "We're lucky it hasn't hit any of us yet, but yeah . . . We've seen a lot of death." Tapu Fini looked at Kyle for a moment and then turned to Evan. What did you mean, that I would be the 'second' Legendary Pokémon to kill you?IC - ??? - Lake of the Moone, Ula’ula Island:. . .It was gone. The creature could have provided a key, but it was gone. The Nihilego was still an interesting prospect, but a useful one? No. A portal of shadow opened behind her and she stepped through. The Devagore and Plite could rip and tear as they see fit, but for now, there was no use getting directly involved. Besides, there seemed to be other disturbances that might prove more . . . delectable.
|
|
alku
Technician
Posts: 63
|
Post by alku on Nov 15, 2022 13:13:29 GMT -8
IC: Evan Tierra
After the euphoria of unleashing such power, Evan was left panting and feeling quite dizzy from the combined effort of channeling Mega energy and Z-Power. Evan felt the fading connection forged by the marriage of Z-Mega Resonance, with Gnip's last words being: "You will never be alone, as long as you have us. Remember that, my friend." Evan nodded and then looked at Fini, smiling. "Oh, I was killed by Zekrom once upon a time." The Hero said, holding his head. "I was brought back by Dialga to keep fighting. Sorry about that."
|
|
|
Post by Magical Girl Mimi on Nov 15, 2022 14:03:23 GMT -8
-==IC: Lucia Zyther/Corey Bouchard(Boota) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island==-
Lucia looked up with a puzzled look on her face. She could have sworn she had seen a flicker around one of the pieces of stone toward the roof of the ruins, but she didn't see anything when she looked. Uncertain, she looked back down to the battleground as Corey recalled their Piloswine.
"Yeah, I can go another round!" Corey called out with a grin. "You're doing pretty well, but let's see how things go against my oldest partner!" They reached for a Poké Ball on their belt and smiled softly. "Ready for some nostalgia Feraligatr?" The creature in the capsule nodded, and Corey turned their eyes back up to Ethan and Tox. "Alright, let's go! Feraligatr!" Corey threw the Poké Ball forward - mid-arc, it burst open in a flash of red light to reveal the cyan lizard in all her magnificent glory. She took a couple steps toward Tox intimidatingly, keeping an eye on the flitting Beedrill as she opened and closed her hands as if she hadn't gotten a chance to fight for fun in quite a while.
OOC: Species: Feraligatr Nickname: None Gender: Feminine Trainer: Corey Bouchard Appearance: No differences; She was caught in a Luxury Ball, but was moved to a Heal Ball later. Personality: Feraligatr is very loyal to Corey, having been there for a lot of big things. She is fiercely protective of her trainer, having saved him from a number of very dangerous situations as a child. She is also very adamant about staying to fight, even if Corey has to flee. Ability: Sheer Force Specialty: Physical Attack+, Special Attack-, stronger contact moves like having Tough Claws. Known Moves: Aqua Jet (Egg), Metal Claw (Egg), Dragon Dance (Egg), Crunch, Slash, Superpower, Bite, Scratch
-==IC: Colleen Llyan(Vivian) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island==-
Colleen was about to call out to try and help the Noibat as she landed as well, but quickly paused in surprise as he evolved before her eyes. With a smile, she turned her attention to the rest of the fight with a look of determination. She quickly sent out Myriam, the Mienshao immediately entering a battle stance when her Poké Ball opened up. "Myriam, use Aura Sphere with me on this Maulice." Colleen pointed toward the Instance in question as she charged up a ball of Aura in her left hand. With a nod, Myriam charged up a sphere of her own and Trainer and Pokémon combined to fire upon the Maulice who only turned when the blinding flash of violet and gold was about to crash into what once was its head. Still, Colleen felt worried - so far this hadn't been too difficult, but the rate at which they were fighting threatened to make sure the Instances overwhelmed them. She didn't see any other idea of what to do, however. Just in case, Colleen sent out the rest of her team so that none of them could be surprised by the monstrosities they were fighting.
OOC: Myriam: Aura Sphere > Maulice
-==IC: Jenny Hakuda(Boarlite)/Chloe Hikari(Ren) - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island==-
Jenny and Chloe were launched backward by the powerful burst of energy unleashed by Nature's Madness. Jenny in particular struggled to sit up, panting as she seemed to stare off into nothingness. She blinked a number of times as she gripped her head, then finally focused on Tapu Fini with a small look of confusion on her face. She stayed quiet as the others spoke, though she occasionally moved her head to look off at the others. Her Emboar walked over and sat next to her. Jenny absentmindedly pet the Fire-type as she was nuzzled by Boarlite.
Chloe, on the other hand, groaned as she pushed herself to her feet and recalled the now-fainted, now-normal Luxray back to her Poké Ball. She searched around in her purse for any kind of healing item as well, as she wanted to make sure that Tapu Fini could defend herself if anyone less noble showed up after they left - or if Instances decided to crash the party. Chloe also let out a sigh of relief that Tapu Fini was listening now too, and allowed herself a small smile. From what she could tell, things were finally looking up.
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Nov 17, 2022 23:46:01 GMT -8
IC - Ethan Worth (Tox)/Skye Hall (Torch) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island:
"Alright!" Ethan grinned. "Let's hop to it, Tox! Poison Jab!"
With a flash of speed and a glint of his metallic stingers, Tox shot toward Feraligatr. His stingers glowed with a sickly purple color as he aimed for a quick fly-by swipe at the larger Water-Type Pokémon.
IC - Kyle Eston (Kitheus) - Guardian Spirit Tapu Fini - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island:
Tapu Fini stared with confusion at Evan. You have never died, she said at length. I would know. I think perhaps the Lord of Time's power has left you confused of your own fate. Tapu Fini looked around. But this is not why you have come here. You seek my help against that creature--and, I assume, the help of my fellows.
IC - Sonja Baron (Ares/Athena/Neith) - Missing Zero - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island:
A ringing from Sonja's wrist halted her advance toward the battlefield. As Athena flew forward to provide Ares with back-up, Neith hung back to protect his trainer as she answered the call. The display on her Pokétch remained private, but it quickly became clear who was calling.
"Dear sister," the voice of Madison Hayes echoed. "Tell me whether I am accurately tracking your location at a Missing Zero landing point."
"Uh, well . . ." An explosion sounded on the beach somewhere behind Sonja. "I can't tell you that I'm not there."
"Why are you wasting time out there?" Hayes snapped. "The current objective is to find whatever Legendary Pokémon you can to help, not to engage it directly. Get out of there."
"Yeah, that would kind of be why we're fighting, because half of our group is still inside a Legendary Pokémon's temple and we need to keep these things distracted," Sonja shot back, not even bothering to mask her frustration. "Do you want to let us handle this or do you want to keep harping on me?"
Hayes did not respond for a moment. "If it's to further the mission--"
"Then let us handle it," Sonja said. "We've got a battle to run." She hung up. Frustrated as she was, she had to admit that Hayes did have a point--the sooner they were out of here, the better. And the main thing was not to win, but to buy time.
Might as well run as many distractions as possible.
Following Colleen's lead, she sent out her entire team. A horde of Pokémon erupted around her, all ready to do what they could to run interference in this fight. As they each moved to do what they did best, Sonja kept a hand on her Return Module, ready to call the team back as soon as they were ready to skedaddle with the rest of their group--which would hopefully be soon.
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Nov 21, 2022 18:39:12 GMT -8
IC: Ryan Sanders (Togie) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island Sitting in front, Ryan was not expecting the effects of Ray’s magic card in the slightest. One moment they were flying through the air evading flying Instances. The next, lightning erupted out of magical circles right in front of them.
Blinded and deafened, it was all Ryan could do to grip Togie’s feathers tightly and try not to slip off. Togie was also caught by surprise and dropped several hundred feet before righting himself. “What the heck was that?!” Ryan cried — although amidst the ringing in his ears, he couldn’t even hear his own voice.
Directing Togie away from the battle for a moment, Ryan looked down at the coast. Colleen and Sonja were on the ground, fighting with Sonja’s newly evolved Noivern. Further up the coast, the Aether soldiers were also managing to hold their own for now, apparently invigorated by the sight of reinforcements.
When the ringing stopped and the sounds of battle returned, Ryan looked over his shoulder at Ray. “That was Signs magic, wasn’t it? Where’d you learn to do that? A little warning would’ve been nice.”
Togie squawked a warning. From the west came a Magnode, shifted into its Energized Forme with tendrils of electricity swinging its four magnets around the main body. As Ryan and Ray watched, the Electric-Type Instance charged up a Zap Cannon, its magnets spinning faster and faster as it gathered energy.
Ryan glanced back at Ray again. “Got any more card tricks up your sleeve?”
IC: Ellen Burks - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island Despite the protection of Light Screen and Reflect, Ellen and Symbio still found themselves thrown against a wall by the devastating attack. Stars erupted in front of their eyes as they each felt the wind get knocked out of them.
Each . . . ?
Slowly at first, then rapidly, Ellen and Symbio felt their minds drifting apart. In a flash of light Symbio reverted to the look of a normal Reuniclus as both of them slumped on the floor, exhausted.
Ellen wearily picked herself up. This was her first direct fight against a Legendary Pokémon. Sure, she had faced the enraged Zekrom in Dragonspiral Tower and the Ancient Darkrai in the Sinjoh Ruins (not to mention that Ditto transformed into Groudon in Sootopolis), but in each of those battles she had commanded her Pokémon from the sidelines. This was the first time that, thanks to the power of Mega Evolution, she had fought directly against such a powerful opponent. And having her strength and energy tied to Symbio’s gave her a new appreciation for the many battles her Pokémon had fought on her behalf.
Isabella had been less fortunate. Even with the added strength from Ingrain, the force of Nature’s Madness sent the Gloom to her knees. She collapsed in exhaustion, still conscious, but unable to battle. “You did good, Isabella,” Ellen said softly, embracing her fallen Pokémon before recalling her to the safety of her Pokéball.
Then Ellen, still exhausted herself, made her way over to Evan and Jenny, just in time to hear Tapu Fini’s remark about Evan’s death. “See, Evan?” she said with a weary smile. “All that worry and Tapu Fini doesn’t even care about what happened to you in Unova.” She looked over at the Guardian Deity, taking off her lei and gently draping it around the Tapu’s shell. “But yes, Tapu Fini. We humbly ask you to join our fight. You and your brethren. I think with you on our side, we might have an easier time convincing the other Tapus to join our cause as well. Together, we can put a stop to that monster once and for all.”
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Nov 22, 2022 22:27:33 GMT -8
IC - Sonja Baron (Ares/Athena/Neith/Loki/Gaia/Poseidon/Neptune/Atum/Tanith/Beira) - Missing Zero - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island:
The battle raged across the beach. Sonja panted as she came to a stop atop a large sloped rock, looking out over the skirmishes her team and allies were engaged in. Aether, Liberty, and Rocket forces were continuing to join the fight, ensuring an ongoing line of support. That was a relief; at the very least it meant they could pull out without having to worry about the battlefield being immediately overrun. Still, there was a lot going on and they were losing precious increments of ground with each passing moment. Sonja truly did not envy the trainers who had been assigned to primary battlefield duty.
She turned to survey her team. Ares remained in an ongoing struggle against a Dramalgon, nearly evenly matched in terms of their draconic power. Neith and Athena coordinated with each other flawlessly in the air, darting around and tearing at whatever Instances they could. Loki protected Gaia's back from a number of eerily-moving Maniakoll, while Gaia herself locked down the field against several Sinystal. Neptune and Poseidon rode atop Atum, sniping with well-aimed Water-Type attacks; meanwhile Tanith and Beira moved at the Rhydon's feet, attacking in combination to take down some of the smaller Instances on the ground nearby.
All was going well so far. As she watched, however, Sonja became aware of a series of new silver and yellow summoning sigils that appeared on the exposed surface of Missing Zero's form. She did a quick mental run through of the documented sigils, and after a moment was certain that this one had not been encountered before. As she watched, her suspicions were confirmed. Strange creatures--No stranger than any other Instance, she corrected herself--began to pull themselves through the sigils. They bore metallic bodies that seemed robotic in nature. Their forms terminated at the waist, where they connected to large television screens. A number of red and blue cords hung from the bottom of the screens, and a tangle of these same cords extended out from the creature's upper body before shifting into the familiar umbilical cords of all Instances. The creatures faces lit with wide, unnerving smiles as their doll-like eyes surveyed the field.
The creatures hovered in front of the field in an uneven line, expressions unchanging as their erratic high-pitched cackles began to leak into the noise of the battlefield. The most unnerving thing about them was that they did not move to engage, instead simply floating there and watching, their television screens powering on and displaying a mess of static intermixed with random images that popped in and out among the noise. Sonja felt her skin crawl as she watched them, though she couldn't place exactly why.
She turned on her comm. "New Instances on the field," she said to Ray, Ryan, and Colleen. "Please be careful--I don't know what they're capable of, but right now they're just . . . sitting there."
IC - Kyle Eston (Kitheus) - Guardian Spirit Tapu Fini - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island:
As Tapu Fini listened to Ellen speak, she placed a hand on the lei and closed her eyes. The flowers began to glow, and as the group watched they seemed to rejuvenate the Guardian Spirit. After a moment the glow faded and she looked to the young trainer.
I meant what I said earlier, she said. This creature is disconnected from death; it is not like anything else that has inhabited this world before. Defeating it is going to be difficult, if not impossible. Are you certain this is a task you wish to take on?
"Someone has to," Kyle said. "Besides, a small chance of success is better than nothing."
Tapu Fini bowed her head. Then I concede, she said. I will fight. She pulled her hands together, pulling energy together. It coalesced into a small circular object containing water. I cannot leave Poni Island while it remains under threat. Take this water clock as a token; when you speak with my brothers and sister, it will demonstrate my commitment to your cause. She looked up at the ceiling. That creature encroaches on this location; a battle rages overhead. We must leave before it overtakes the temple.
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Dec 6, 2022 10:11:06 GMT -8
IC: Ellen Burks (Symbio) - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island Ellen looked up in alarm. “Missing Zero’s outside?” she said. “Are Ryan and the others alright? We have to help them!”
We’re deep inside the temple at this point, Symbio observed. Remember how long it took us to get through the mist?
Ellen nodded and turned back to Tapu Fini. “Is there some shortcut out of here?” she asked.
IC: Ryan Sanders (Togie) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island “Got any more card tricks up your sleeve?”
Before Ray could respond, Sonja’s voice came through their coms. “New Instances on the field. Please be careful--I don’t know what they’re capable of, but right now they’re just . . . sitting there.”
Ryan chanced a glance down and spotted the boxy shapes of the new Instances. Were those . . . television sets? “Roger that, Sonja. We’ll take point, see what we can find out.”
Returning his attention to the Magnode before them, Ryan plucked a Pokéball from his belt. “That thing’s like a Magnemite, right?” His Mismagius materialized before them. “Missy, burn that thing up with a Magical Fire!”
The Mismagius nodded and concentrated, preparing to summon mystic flames to her aid. Just as the first few flames flickered to life, a loud, staticky noise pierced the battlefield. Missy’s flames fizzled out as quickly as they had appeared, much to everyone’s surprise.
Before they could figure out what was going on, the Magnode unleashed its Zap Cannon. Togie spun away as Missy leapt forward to take the full brunt of the blast.
As Togie righted himself, Ryan saw one of the new Instances watching them and giggling incessantly. It was hard to tell amidst all the fighting, but it almost seemed like the static noise was coming from the Instance.
“Alright, new plan,” Ryan muttered, glancing back at Ray. “Might want to hold onto something.” Throwing another Pokéball with all his might, he yelled, “Togie! Dive!”
Even as the Togekiss took them under their enemy, Ryan’s Garchomp emerged in a flash of light. At the sight of the new Pokémon, the Magnode unleashed a Thunderbolt, only for Garchomp to absorb the electrical attack. With a ferocious roar, the mighty dragon slammed into the Magnode and began ripping it to shreds. The Instance crackled and sputtered as its internal circuitry was ripped out, rendering it as good as dead -- if such a thing could have ever been considered alive to begin with.
With the Magnode taken care of, Garchomp spread his arms, catching the sea breeze in his fins and gliding down to meet Ryan, Ray, and Togie. “Good work.” Ryan allowed himself a smile. “Evan and Gnip would be proud.”
Their dive had taken them closer to the new Instance. There was no doubt now that it was responsible for the white noise, which grew louder and louder as they approached the source.
“You turned off Missy’s attack, didn’t you?” Ryan glared at the robot-like creature protruding from the static-filled television set. Missy floated beside him, equally irate, yet unable to summon any attacks against the creature.
The robotic face just grinned.
IC: Z-Warrior Zoe Llyan/Beast/Tracer/Drifter - Mount Lanakila, Ula’ula Island The snowy landscape seemed to darken by the minute as the sun sank lower over the mountain peak. And yet, even as Zoe shivered from the intense cold, she couldn’t help but see the beauty of the frozen mountain. A field of trees stood tall and strong against the fierce winds, their snow-tipped greenery looking like postcard-worthy Christmas trees.
“This reminds me of when my parents took us skiing near Dendemille Town,” she said in an attempt to lighten the mood.
Instead of nods of agreement or impressed affirmations, Zoe found three pairs of eyes trained on her with incredulous looks. “Your parents took you skiing?” Drifter asked with a hint of longing in her voice.
“Dang, girl, your parents must’ve been rich!” Beast said.
Tracer offered a low whistle. “Little Miss Bougie over here. Dendemille’s in Kalos, right?”
Zoe nodded. “Yeah, we grew up there, and even after moving to the Sevii Islands, we still visited often for my sister’s training. I wouldn’t say we were that rich, though.”
Beast gave a sharp laugh, which quickly turned into a coughing fit. As his Bewear supported him to keep him from falling, Beast placed a hand on his side with a grimace. Apparently the tentacled Ultra Beast’s attack had done more damage than they’d thought. “Not that rich, you say?” Beast bared his teeth in a grin out of either amusement or pain. “Did you always have running water, heat, and air conditioning? Did you ever wonder when your next meal would be? Did you ever have to do anything to ensure your own survival, or did Mommy and Daddy take care of everything for you? Trust me, Z. You’re richer than you think.”
“And that’s okay,” Drifter cut in, shooting a look at Beast. “Team Skull accepts people from all walks of life, and we don’t hold anyone’s family circumstances against them. Whether rich or poor, we all had issues that led us to Team Skull.” Beast opened his mouth to argue but Drifter quickly added, “I know, you weren’t exactly led to Team Skull. But my point still stands: unlike the rest of the world, we don’t discriminate against anyone unless they threaten our freedom.”
Zoe leaned against a tree to catch her breath, sparing a glance up at the cave they were heading to. It still seemed so far away. “I’m sorry if I offended you,” she told Beast. “I guess I don’t really know any of your family circumstances. I didn’t— ah!”
The snowy ground suddenly gave way beneath her, sending her into a small hole. Loose snow quickly filled in the gaps and Zoe found herself up to her armpits in cold, wet snow.
Drifter swore. “That’s a tree well. Careful not to fall in yourselves,” she warned Beast and Tracer.
The three quickly set about their rescue efforts. As Tracer’s Krookodile started to dig through the snow, Beast’s Bewear helped the three trainers pull Zoe free. It took several minutes, but finally Zoe was lifted off the ground and carefully placed on a snow bank.
“Are you alright?” Drifter asked.
“C-cold . . .” Zoe shivered. Her whole body felt soaked.
“Of all the places that Cosmog could’ve brought us,” Drifter muttered. “Pea-Tupato, can you carry Z the rest of the way? I’ll help Beast.”
The Bewear nodded and carefully slung Zoe over his shoulder. The giant bear was warm and soft, and Zoe found his fur very comfortable after the freezing slush.
“Try to stay awake,” Drifter urged her. “We’re almost to the cave.”
“O . . . kay . . .” Zoe mumbled. She looked up at the mouth of the cave and fought to keep her eyes open, but Pea-Tupato’s rhythmic steps seemed to lull her into a tempting sleep. Surely they would rest for the night when they got to the cave. And they were so close, anyway. Perhaps she should just take a short nap . . . .
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Dec 11, 2022 17:45:25 GMT -8
IC - Kyle Eston (Kitheus) - Guardian Spirit Tapu Fini - Ruins of Hope, Poni Island:
The trip out should be much shorter than the way in, Tapu Fini said, a wry smile crossing her face. The fog works in mysterious ways. Come.
The Guardian Deity floated to the tunnel, bringing her hands forward before sweeping them sideways. The group watched as the fog within cleared. With it gone, they could now hear the distant sounds of fighting echoing from the outside. It seemed that the fog had, indeed, worked to make the trip inside much more extensive than it had truly been. Without waiting for a response, Tapu Fini floated down the tunnel, heading out to join the fight.
Kyle looked around at the others before following after her. "We should go help the others, fast."
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Dec 14, 2022 17:00:56 GMT -8
IC: Ellen Burks (Symbio) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island As Ellen emerged from the Ruins of Hope, her eyes were immediately drawn to the Instances flying overhead. She paused at the mouth of the tunnel to catch her breath. The battle with Tapu Fini had taken more out of her than she’d realized.
By now she was certain that the bond she shared with Symbio during Mega Evolution affected her stamina. She felt every hit Symbio had taken as if Tapu Fini had been attacking her directly. And so while the others rushed into battle, Ellen had to fight off her exhaustion.
“Evan, wait!” she called out, running up to the Hero of Space. “I know that lei was supposed to be an offering for Tapu Fini, but can I take one of the orchids? You see, my Flabébé doesn’t have a flower of her own, and she needs one to fight, and—“
“Say no more, Ellen!” With a dramatic flourish Evan plucked an orchid from the lei around his neck and held it out to Ellen. “I would be honored to help out a friend in need! And I think the Tapu would be honored to have one of her flowers used in battle against that monster.”
“Thanks.” Ellen sent out her Pokémon and offered the flower to her. “What do you think, Fiora? This is a very special flower honoring Tapu Fini and all who have passed on to the Other Side.”
The Flabébé took the orchid and inspected it in her tiny hands. Then she channeled a Fairy Wind through the flower, directing it towards the pool of water they were standing in. The energy created a series of ripples in the pool before sending countless droplets into the air where they refracted the light of her fairy energy in a dazzling effect. Fiora nodded in satisfaction and floated to Ellen’s side.
“Good.” Ellen smiled. She turned her attention to the lip of the crater in which they stood. “Symbio, can you take us up there?”
You sure you’re ready for this, Ellen? Symbio could tell his trainer was exhausted; in fact, it was only thanks to his use of Recover that Symbio himself didn’t feel that same exhaustion.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Ellen said as Symbio telekinetically lifted them out of the crater. Despite the resolve in her voice, she felt her heart rate quicken as the Missing Zero’s army came into view. Off in the distance she saw Sonja and Colleen locked in combat, while Ryan and Ray darted through the air on a Togekiss. Further down the coast, Aether soldiers fought valiantly, yet they were heavily outnumbered.
You know, this is our first time fighting the Missing Zero directly, Symbio noted.
Ellen nodded and tried to swallow her fear. “We haven’t seen them since Two Island, and back then all we could do was flee. I forgot just how terrifying and unnatural they are.”
But we’re stronger now. Symbio moved his hands in a pattern to create another Light Screen. It’s time to show that monster our resolve! With a final push he sent the protective barrier toward Sonja and Colleen’s Pokémon.
A minotaur-looking Instance—Minotore, Ellen recalled from Vertrag’s notes—spotted them and charged with a ferocious snort. Fiora gave a frantic cry and darted in front of Ellen, unleashing another Fairy Wind from her orchid. The Minotore screamed as the fairy energy knocked it flat on its back. It struggled to get up, but Fiora kept up the attack, pinning the Instance to the ground.
“We are stronger now,” Ellen agreed, sending out Artemis and Maturin as well. The two immediately sprang into battle, Artemis trading blows with a Chimerape, while Maturin lumbered towards a Driprown that lurked in one of the tide pools. “Let’s try to regroup with Sonja and Colleen!” Ellen called to her Pokémon, even as she and Symbio started making their way towards the coastline.
IC: Z-Warrior Zoe Llyan/Beast/Tracer/Drifter - Cave, Mount Lanakila “She’s cold,” Tracer said as he gently took Zoe from Pea-Tupato and laid her down on the hard floor of the cave. The color had drained from her face, and her shallow breathing was the only sign she was still alive.
“That’s not good.” Drifter helped Beast sit down at the opposite wall. The man winced as she lifted his shirt to look at the dark bruise where the Symbiont had squeezed him. “Looks like a broken rib over here. Maybe two.”
“I’ll be fine,” Beast managed, glancing over at Zoe’s still form. “Looks like Z’s got it worse.”
Drifter swore under her breath and rushed over to Zoe’s side. “I told her not to fall asleep. Tracer, you were supposed to look out for her! Stay with me, Z.” With another curse, she looked through the girl’s Pokéballs until she found one in particular.
Esmeralda materialized and slumped against the wall, still wounded from her earlier fight. Drifter shook the Braixen by the shoulders. “There’s no time to rest. Z’s in trouble. She’s losing too much heat.”
With a worried cry, the Braixen took her stick-wand and summoned a small flame. She held it as close to Zoe as she dared, but the girl’s skin remained cold and clammy. Frustrated, Esmeralda send a Flamethrower to the floor, hoping to start a larger fire. But the moment the flames hid the cold rock they dissipated into smoke. She tried again and again, but to no avail. Each time the flames would create a burst of heat that lasted only a second before the cold set in once more. In anger, Esmeralda screamed and threw her stick against the wall.
“Tracer!” Drifter continued to kneel by Zoe’s side. The color had drained from her face, too, but Tracer suspected it wasn’t from the cold. “We passed some fir trees and aspens on the way over here. I need you to gather some firewood.”
Tracer glanced at the cave entrance. The wind had picked up, blowing snow and ice every which way. Darkness was setting in, too. Another thirty minutes—or less—and only the moon and stars would light up the mountaintop. “Me? Out there?” Tracer laughed. “You must be outta your dang mind. You want me to die out there?”
“We’re all going to die if we don’t get some heat!” Drifter yelled. “Beast is basically dead weight, and Z’s about to freeze to death! You’ve got Crocjaw, you’ll be fine! Just go already!”
“Don’t mind her,” Beast wheezed. “This mountain holds a lot of bad memories for her. After all, it’s where her sister—“
“Go!” Drifter picked up Esmeralda’s stick and threw it at Tracer.
“Okay, okay, geez!” Tracer shook his head in disbelief and headed out into the cold. As soon as he left the small cave the harsh wind cut into him like a dagger.
He quickly sent out his Krookodile for company and pulled his bandanna up over his face. It wasn’t much, but at least it provided some meager protection against the elements. As the last glow of sunlight faded, Tracer pulled out his phone. None of them had any signal up here, but at least the flashlight app could keep him from tumbling off a cliff.
His mind drifted back to what Beast had said. Drifter didn’t talk much about her sister; it came as a surprise that this mountain was where she had died. Even more surprising was that Beast somehow knew that information.
“She’s still crazy,” Tracer muttered as he trudged through the snow. “Just ‘cause this is where her sis kicked the bucket don’t mean we’re gonna meet the same fate. The way I understand it, her sis was all alone, except for her Pokémon. At least we got four of us and our Pokémon.”
Crocjaw offered a flat grunt.
“Yeah, I guess you and I are alone, aren’t we?” Tracer paused and looked around. The blizzard was getting worse. He could barely make out the cluster of trees off in the distance, but the cave behind them was quickly fading from view. “You and I will be fine, though. Ain’t no way we’re letting some dumb mountain get the best of us, right? That’d be a real lame way to go. No offense to Drifter’s sister.”
He thought he saw something move out of the corner of his eye. Was that just the snow flurry? Or were his eyes playing tricks on him in the darkness? He aimed his phone’s light in that direction but saw nothing but snow drifts.
“Crocjaw?” Tracer reached out to grab his Pokémon’s arm. “Gran didn’t have any creepy stories about the mountain, did she?” The Krookodile shrugged. “Great,” Tracer muttered. “Z and Beast are injured, Drifter’s gone off the deep end, and I’m stuck out here in a blizzard trying to keep us all from freezing to death. This better not be how it ends.”
They wandered a few more steps, both listening hard for any signs of life over the howling wind. That was when they came across a pair of rods planted in the ground, crossed over each other in the shape of an X. Each rod looked about three feet in length and made of polished wood, with a ball of cloth covering the top ends, giving them the appearance of giant mallets.
Tracer swore. He was very familiar with the ceremonial sticks used to mark forbidden areas, and his gran had told him plenty of stories about children who ignored these warnings and paid the price. “We didn’t cross these on the way to the cave, did we?” Crocjaw shook his head. Tracer let out a frustrated breath. “So we’re lost?”
The sound of crunching snow behind them made both trainer and Pokémon jump. Tracer whirled around and cried out at the sight of a creature standing just a few feet away.
The creature let out a small bleat and stared up at them with wide eyes. Now that he’d gotten over the initial shock, Tracer recognized the creature as a Deerling, and a rather small one at that. Its snow-tipped fur was a strange blend of the bright green Summer Form Alola’s tropical climate usually produced and the muted brown of its Winter Form. The Deerling stood perfectly still, eyes locked on Tracer’s flashlight like it had been caught in a pair of headlights. Then with another small cry it darted in a wide circle around them, galloping past the warning sticks and vanishing into the snow.
“Poor thing,” Tracer muttered. “Looks like it got separated from its mother. It’s probably as lost as we are.”
Crocjaw grunted and pointed toward where the Deerling had disappeared.
“Are those trees?” Tracer squinted hard, struggling to see through the snowstorm. “Of course they’re in the forbidden area. What do you think, Crocjaw?”
The Krookodile motioned to the trees, then back in the direction of the cave.
“You’re right,” Tracer said. “The others are counting on us. Drifter would have my head if she learned I let some pūlo’ulo’u keep us from getting that firewood. Besides, it’s not like we’re going that deep into the area. We’ll just grab a handful of branches and leave.”
Taking a deep breath, the two stepped over the barrier. They stood on the other side of the sticks for a moment, half expecting to be smote by a blast of lightning. When nothing happened, Tracer led the way to the cluster of trees.
Hurriedly they began ripping branches off the trees, each one resulting in a loud crack that echoed across the mountainside. As Crocjaw tore a particularly thick branch, they felt the wind kick up stronger than before, pelting them with snow and ice. The sounds of splintering wood were accompanied this time by a high pitched, bloodcurdling scream.
Tracer and Crocjaw froze. Over the fierce wind they heard more splintering of wood, as if a great tree had been felled. Then the noise slowly subsided, but the blizzard remained as strong as ever. Cautiously, the two inched deeper into the trees.
They had only traveled a short way before they found signs that something was off. Branches were scattered across the snow and the trees had large gashes in them. It looked like a tornado had been through here, but something told Tracer this wasn’t simply an act of nature. His suspicions were confirmed when he found large spatters of red that stained the fresh white snow.
Crocjaw was tugging at his sleeve, urging him to retreat. A low noise echoed through the trees—was that a deep growl, or just the whistling wind? Tracer could feel his heart pounding in his chest. With shaky breaths he slowly stepped backwards. His phone’s light danced across the ground, revealing more bloodstained snow off to the right.
It looked like a small clearing of some sorts, for all the trees had been blown over by some powerful force. And yet somehow the trees continued to sway in a dizzying fashion. Laying there in the center of the felled trees, surrounded by a pool of blood, was the small Deerling from before—or what remained of it. The Pokémon’s body had been ripped open like a sandbag, its insides littering the snow. A cloaked figure stood hunched over the Deerling, carefully observing it.
As Tracer’s flashlight shone on the cloaked being it rose to its full height—easily seven or eight feet tall. Its cloak was a pale white, with red stains on the sleeves and hood. Snow flurries danced around the figure in an almost hypnotic pattern. From the folds of its cloak, it revealed a long and sharp scythe clutched in a skeletal hand. There was no mistaking who this figure was: the Grim Reaper. But the stories Tracer had heard of the Reaper described it as having a human skull. As the figure turned, Tracer saw the milky white texture of bone, yellowed from age, but the skull was far from human. A long, bestial snout extended from under the figure’s hood, lined with sharp fangs each the size of a dagger. Crimson blood dripped from a wolfish grin. Large eye sockets seemed to glow with a sickly yellow light, and Tracer could have sworn the eye sockets narrowed at the sight of the newcomers. A low snarl filled the air.
“Aw, hell no!” Tracer threw his gathered branches to the ground and ran back the way they came. The Reaper raised its scythe, and suddenly the flurry of snow around it stood still, as if time had frozen. Then with a wave of its skeletal hands, the Reaper sent the barrage of snowflakes flying toward the intruders. Crocjaw’s eyes widened as he saw a flake tear through a tree branch like a knife through butter.
Turning tail, the Krookodile fled after his trainer. A few of the sharpened snowflakes struck each of them, cutting through clothes and hide, drawing thin streaks of blood. All the while they could hear the Reaper’s bestial growls getting closer and closer.
As Tracer burst out of the woods, he chanced a glance behind him. Crocjaw was right on his heels, but the Reaper was rapidly gaining on them, effortlessly floating through the trees. And now that he had left the woods there was nowhere left to hide.
Tracer suddenly found himself faceplanted in the snow. Swearing loudly, he looked back over his shoulder. The pūlo’ulo’u lay in the snow at his feet—he had evidently tripped over the ceremonial sticks with enough force to dislodge them. Crocjaw quickly helped him to his feet as the mass of snowflake daggers flew overhead. By now the Reaper should have been on top of them; but it was nowhere to be seen.
“Nope!” Tracer cried as he brushed off the snow. “Nope! We are not going back in there! Not with the freakin’ Grim Reaper back there. I ain’t gettin’ eviscerated like that. Drifter can find her own dang firewood for all I care!”
Crocjaw picked up one of the sticks Tracer had tripped over and held it out with a grunt.
Tracer looked hard at the wooden stick and shrugged. “I guess these’ll do. We’ll just make sure to avoid these parts when we start heading down the mountain. Now hurry, before that thing decides to come back for our souls.” Tracer picked up the other stick and hurriedly led the way back up the mountain.
Neither Tracer nor Crocjaw noticed the pair of yellow eyes watching them from the woods, nor could they have known the full consequences of what they had just done. But they would find out soon enough. The nightmare had only begun.
|
|
|
Post by minun4 on Dec 25, 2022 14:13:49 GMT -8
IC: Lohe Mahina - Lake of the Moone
Kauhi fell to their knees as the Cosmog slipped out of their grasp. They started to grasp at the air where Cosmog had been. They looked around in hopeless desperation, as if the Cosmog might have chosen to only teleport a few feet, to no avail. A Devagore came close to biting their head off. It would have succeeded too, if not for the timely intervention of Frankenstein and his fist caving in the Devagore’s face, such was the state that Kauhi was in.
Lohe was barely better off. Where Kauhi had divinity abandon them, Lohe saw freedom slip away. The despair induced by the deprivation of hope sapped all movement from Lohe. A different Devagore seeing a similar chance as the first dove towards Lohe. But as it got closer, Lohe’s eyes shot towards it. The Devagore had no time to react when Ruthven grabbed onto it from behind and emitted a high pitch screech, disorienting the Devagore within arms reach of Lohe. Lohe grabbed the Devagore’s leg and pulled the creature to earth. The Devagore began to scramble to its feet but Lohe’s staff went thwack into the back of its head. Lohe repeatedly thrust his staff into the back of the Devagore’s head that was softened by Ruthven’s Screech until it cracked.
“Calm down.” If the elder Lohe felt humiliated for his earlier ill-timed remark, he didn’t let it show on his face. “We still have a job to do.” The elder Lohe pulled out two PokeBalls and tossed them before him. A Bewear, stitched and scarred, and a Grotle, wrinkled and cracked came out of the balls.
Lohe felt only angrier for being told to calm down, but reason took hold. Lohe swept the broken body of the Devagore away and took a deep breath to swallow his rage as best he could. “Right,” he said and pulled out another PokeBall himself, sending out Mu.
The Devagore that Frankenstein had disfigured now traded shots with him. A Plite fired a Moonblast into his back. Seeing that he needed help, Lohe signaled for Ruthven to go aid him. There were still a number of enemies in the air, but overall the battle in the air was turning more in their favor with the disappearance of the Instances’ leader. Unfortunately, this was because the Nihilego was starting to snowball in power. With each Instance that it shot down, the following Venoshock was twice as voluminous and twice as torrential. The Plites fared poorly before it, due to their typing, but the Devagore weren’t faring much better. Both of their special abilities meant nothing to it. A Plite that tried to distract the Nihilego found its head melted clean through, its death replenishing the power that its Siren Song had stolen. A Devagore that appeared before it to use Negative Suggestion wasn’t spared several doses of poison tearing holes through its wings, nor did it stop shooting at the other instances. When it was already fighting indiscriminately, not knowing what it was firing at didn’t matter. The only real effect that it had was that stray shots landed towards both Lohe and their Pokemon, whom the Nihilego had been ignoring. Wearbear picked up his trainer and the Grotle while Lohe picked up Mu and they ran to evade the stray venom.
As the elder Lohe was put down by Wearbear, he called to the younger Lohe. “Do you have a plan? It’s too dangerous to get close.”
Lohe wondered about that for a moment. Frankenstein was their best bet for a one-on-one battle with the ultra-beast, but he was needed in the sky right now, if for no other reason than to deny the Nihilego its Beast Boosts. “I have an idea, if I’m remembering what Wearbear can do correctly,” Lohe said while gesturing for Mu to climb on his back. As the dark Rattata scurried up his back, Lohe said, “It will be hard on you both,” addressing Wearbear and Mu, “are you up for it?”
Mu, though still not fond of Lohe, was intrigued by the thought of felling such an opponent. He put himself in position in silent affirmation. Wearbear on the other hand expressed his readiness with a roar.
“I’ll take those as a yes.”
The Nihilego grew increasingly frustrated by the moment. It still saw the Cosmog that everyone else had seen vanish, in fact the Cosmog had seemed to multiply as the fight went on. No matter how many it shot down, more seemed to keep coming.
“Gamera! Earth Power!” came a shout from the elder Lohe to his Grotle.
The stonework beneath the Nihilego erupted with golden light. The Ground Type move sent the Poison-Rock type spiraling, only its resilience to Special moves protected it. Which one did that? There were too many of them to tell. Looking towards the ground however, it sensed a trail of golden light along the floor. Tracing the trail towards its source, it felt what it was absolutely certain was the aura of a Cosmog. Even when its other senses failed, it was sure of it this time. It brought all of its tentacles together and fired towards the source of the aura. The venom stopped short of the Cosmog. It stopped short of the end of the golden trail. Something, or rather someone was standing in its way.
Wearbear stood in front of Gamera, his arms crossed, prepared to use Endure to survive what may come. Wearbear’s interference ticked off the Nihilego who poured even more of itself into attacking Wearbear. No matter how much force the Nihilego poured into Wearbear, he refused to budge from his position. If not for the Negative Suggestion, the Nihilego might have noticed Gamera propping Wearbear up or the life force flowing from behind it and into Wearbear.
Lohe positioned himself on the opposite side of the Nihilego. For the plan to work, he had to wait, even though it meant that both Wearbear and Mu would feel further pain. Or rather, for his plan to work, both of them had to be in pain. Mu, riding on Lohe’s back, tighten his grip on Lohe to distract himself from the pain of life exiting his body. Wearbear, who was taking the blow, felt his arms burn from the high-powered acid. Even with Endure and Pain Split, he would not last forever. Lohe placed his staff and jacket on the ground, waiting for the moment to strike.
The moment that Wearbear faltered, even with Gamera’s propping him up, was the moment Lohe shot forward and ran towards the Nihilego. The Nihilego realized Lohe’s presence as he ran up behind it. It stopped its assault on Wearbear and grabbed Lohe the moment he got too close to the Nihilego. Lohe struggled with the tentacles. The pain of the tentacles squeezing on him was nothing. The pain of the poison it then began to pour onto him was indescribable. The acid melted through his chest and into his guts. Most men would die on the spot, it was exactly what he’d been trained for, what his curse prepared him for. What mattered was its focus was on him.
Lohe grabbed onto the tentacles, his strength trapping the trapper with him. “Now!”
Mu jumped off Lohe’s back. He covered himself in a red aura that spread from the pores where life force had leaked from him to Wearbear, as if he’d been bleeding all over his body. But while his body seemed bloody, his eyes and mind were focused. He focused in on his target and collided with the head of the Nihilego.
The weak tackle of a half-dead rat caused the space nightmare to go squish into the stone platform, even breaking through Lohe’s hold on the creature. The Endeavor transferred all of Mu’s pain into the Nihilego. Going from a nearly full tank to empty sent it into shock. The elder Lohe saw the opportunity and took it. He revealed a Beast Ball and took aim. He wound up his arm and unleashed a Major League worthy pitch. The ball beaned the Nihilego before opening itself to consume it. The ball fell to the ground and furiously shook before the creature inside finally relented.
Lohe fell to a knee and weakly looked up. Ruthven and Frankenstein were hunting down the remaining Instances. The fight was just about won. He wanted to say something, but the pain in his gut was too much. Mu and Wearbear weren’t in much better shape. They might not have a hole in their guts, but they didn’t have his powers of restoration.
A grassy bed appeared under Lohe, Mu and Wearbear. The elder Lohe and Gamera walked up to Lohe. The Grassy Terrain began to provide some relief from all of their pain, but the process was slow.
“This is about all I can do for you at the moment,” the elder Lohe said as he pulled out potions for Mu and Wearbear. “I may have to cut around the wound to flush the venom out of your system. We’ll have to see how your regeneration handles it.”
“Something like this?” Lohe said with a bitter smile. “You’ve done worse to me than this.”
The elder Lohe didn’t respond, rather beginning to work on Wearbear’s wounds. The younger Lohe closed his eyes to sleep.
|
|
|
Post by Magical Girl Mimi on Dec 25, 2022 15:25:45 GMT -8
-==IC: Corey Bouchard(Feraligatr)/Lucia Zyther - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island==-
"Dragon Dance!" Corey called out as their Feraligatr simply steeled herself and charged up a menacing aura of black and red lightning. The Poison Jab made her grimace, but Feraligatr simply glared at the Beedrill and continued to charge up her speed and strength, feeling like she could take a couple more hits at the least.
-==IC: Chloe Hikari/Jenny Hakuda/Colleen Llyan - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island==-
"They're really starting to get overrun..." Chloe mumbled as she ran forward, hand on the Poké Ball that contained Allie. She briefly stopped to look over to Jenny with a concerned frown. Ever since the battle had ended, Jenny had seemed really out of it and almost confused, and there hadn't really been any moments to talk about it - and it didn't seem like there would be any more until they got to safety. Hopefully she's alright. I'll have to check in later - and if she gets overwhelmed in the meantime, I can help protect her. Chloe thought as she dashed forward again.
The battle to get closer to the coastline felt rough - the closer they got, the more it seemed like the Instances were already everywhere on the island. Nonetheless, Chloe both sent out her partner Gallade, along with the rest of her team that she had on hand. "Alright, let's give some help!" Chloe called out as Allie flourished the spectral sword she summoned with a Swords Dance. With a nod, the two ran forward - Allie moved forward to cut down the two Devagore and Sinystal in their path. Chloe faltered slightly, but kept running.
"Allie? What attack was that?"
"Hm? A Sacred Sword, I think?"
"When did you learn that?"
There was no immediate reply. "I'm... not entirely sure; I've been trying to focus my Close Combat skills into a sword form for a while, but... I guess it only really came to mind now?"
Chloe grinned - this was a good thing for this kind of fight. "Well, whatever you're doing, keep it up! It not sapping into your stamina is gonna help us out a lot!" Allie nodded in response to Chloe's comment and continued to help try to clear a path. The constant glow from the water made her realize this was likely not the best idea, but she wasn't entirely sure how they'd get out of this otherwise. The rest of Chloe's team also chipped in, with Sharla and Ren leading their own groups of Chloe's Pokémon to the left and right respectively. Katie and Luke joined Sharla on the left as they struck out at the enemies they could get at. Elsa, Simone, and Melia teamed up with Ren on the right side to try and push back the Instances on that side a bit - though they definitely were struggling more and more as they felt like the Instances were replaced quicker and quicker when they finally took something down.
Jenny, on the other hand, struggled to keep up. Her head was pounding even more than it usually would after a fight like that. She bit her lip as she wondered just how the fight against Tapu Fini had gone. She took a deep breath as she looked around for targets. She noticed Chloe turn around just in time to see Jenny fall behind just enough that the gap that had been cleared was filled in, and some of the Instances advanced toward her now. What caught her attention, however, was one of the odd grinning Instances that hung in the air above the crowd. Its focus didn't appear to be on her, as it seemed to be tracking what Sharla was doing, but something about it made her feel extremely unnerved - even more so than any other Instance.
"Alright, Lurelite..." Jenny whispered as she moved her hand from her head to the Poké Ball that held her only ranged attacker. "Let's hit that thing with a Heat Wave to start." The Chandelure spun around with a chime and shot off a blazing wave of fire toward the television set-like Instance as the rest of Jenny's team appeared to help defend her and Lurelite while this was going on.
Colleen, on the other hand, was surprised as her and her team were surrounded by barriers of light. She turned to look, and caught sight of Ellen and her team approaching through the ever-growing crowd of Instances dead and alive. What surprised her next however was her Clawitzer jumping to the ground. She caught Vivian and gave the sniper a curious look. As if knowing exactly what Colleen's expression was trying to say, the Clawitzer tried to fire off a burst of water toward a nearby Harpreak that was diving toward one of Aether's fighters, however only a brief splash of water was shot out instead. For a moment, Colleen's heart skipped a beat as she wondered if the powers had gone out again for some reason. The next moment, sense came back to her mind as she both witnessed her Gyarados use an Aqua Tail to push back some of the advancing foes and also realized that the Light Screen had only just been put up. With a sigh of relief, she recalled her Clawitzer, confused as to what had happened there.
-==IC: Ray Hakuda - The Skies of Poni Island==-
There were multiple times where Ray tried to open his mouth, only for something else to happen. "How about we talk later?" Ray chuckled awkwardly as his hearing finally came back to normal a bit. He looked to the new enemy they had come to a stop in front of and tried to look at it. Something felt very wrong about it, but he couldn't place why. "Any guesses to what type this is?" Ray asked Ryan as he looked to his belt to try and figure out what he could send out against this new threat.
|
|
alku
Technician
Posts: 63
|
Post by alku on Dec 25, 2022 16:01:04 GMT -8
IC: Evan Tierra
Evan wheezed as he followed the others, trying to keep up. As he did, he noticed that last battle had definitely taken more out of him than he realized. Was it knowing the truth of his supposed slaying? Regardless he man had finally reached the scene of battle, and was struck by just how many foes had appeared. As he went further, he definitely noticed something was wrong, especially considering he felt how heavy his body was. Realizing what was happening, he sent out Valkyrie, got on her and sent out Monstro. "Valkyrie, you're gonna have to be my legs right now." He turned to Monstro. " Come with me, and protect the others with Wide Guard. Ready?" The two Pokémon nodded. Valkyrie rushed forward, with Monstro conjuring a barrier comprised of shining hexagons as he followed.
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Jan 4, 2023 10:49:12 GMT -8
IC: Ryan Sanders (Togie/Missy/Garchomp) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island “What type?” Ryan stared at the Instance and considered what he knew. While his Pokédex had been updated with Team Liberty’s data on most known Instances, there was no data on this one yet. That meant he’d have to figure it out the old fashioned way, without the Pokédex’s aid.
The creature before him resembled a toy robot that had somehow been fused with a flatscreen television. Red and blue cables dangled below the screen and emerged from the robot’s head. “Seems to at least be an Electric-Type,” Ryan said. “Maybe Steel. We can easily test that theory. Garchomp, use Sand Tomb!”
With a ferocious roar, Garchomp summoned a whirlwind of sand from the nearby beach. The attack, assisted by his Sand Veil ability, pelted the robotic Instance. At first the sand only made a few chips and dents in the robot body. Then larger grains started to crack the television screen. The Instance frowned for a split second, then grinned and giggled incessantly before crying out in a Disarming Voice. The attack struck the unsuspecting Garchomp, knocking his flight off course and sending him spiraling down several feet.
“That was a Fairy-Type attack.” Ryan frowned. “I thought most Instances primarily used attacks of their respective typing. Still, it didn’t seem to like the Ground-Type attack . . .”
As Ryan mulled over this new information, the Instance’s giggles turned into a haunting melody directed at Togie. Both Trainer and Pokémon were so busy trying to analyze their foe that neither recognized the tune for what it truly was: Perish Song.
IC: Ellen Burks (Symbio/Fiora/Artemis/Maturin) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island It was slow going, but Ellen and her Pokémon managed to make their way across the battlefield towards their allies. As Artemis drop-kicked a Fraygrins, Ellen finally made it to Sonja and Colleen’s side.
“We recruited Tapu Fini,” Ellen panted. “She’s around here somewhere, lending her assistance.” She quickly explained how the Guardian of Poni Island refused to leave her island while it was in danger, but had offered them a token of her support that should convince the other Tapus to join their cause.
But it looks like you’ve been keeping busy while we were away, Symbio added, blasting a Pollucant with psychic energy.
“We got what we came here for, we should organize a retreat.” Ellen pointed to the Aether soldiers fighting further down the coast. “But what about them? We can’t just leave Aether to fight these Instances on their own, can we?”
IC: Bully/Trigger/Snake - Lake of the Moone, Ula’ula Island “Riiona, return!” Snake called out. From the mass of Wishiwashi, a single tiny fish flopped to the ground before allowing herself to be caught in the return beam of Snake’s Pokéball. The now leaderless clump of Wishiwashi dispersed, some halfheatedly fighting the remaining angels and demons while most made their way back to the lake.
“What do we do, boss?” Trigger asked. “Tracer, Beast, and Drifter aren’t answering their phones. And that Cosmog hasn’t Teleported back yet.”
“And it won’t,” Snake replied. “Not while it perceives this place to be full of danger. As much as I hate to admit it, Z and the others are on their own. We’d better retreat as well.”
“And go where?” Bully demanded as he returned his Turtonator. “Po Town? That place is bound to be worse than this freakfest.”
“We’ll camp out in the woods tonight.” Snake nodded toward the setting sun. “No point in traveling in the dark when we’re exhausted. In the morning we’ll head to Malie City.”
“Our old stomping grounds?” Bully said in surprise. “What do you expect to find in that dump?”
“With any luck, answers.” Snake turned around and stalked into the woods without waiting for the others to follow.
“Our old stomping grounds?” Trigger questioned as he and Bully hurried after their leader. “We never did anything in Malie.”
“The six of us didn’t,” Bully agreed. “But that’s where I met Snake, after I left Hau’oli. The two of us earned quite the reputation there before we joined up with Team Skull. We . . . weren’t exactly popular.”
Trigger raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Oh, this oughta be fun.”
IC: Z-Warrior Zoe Llyan/Beast/Tracer/Drifter - Cave, Mount Lanakila “I’m sorry,” Beast said for the umpteenth time.
Drifter said nothing and kept her attention on Zoe. She had been in a mood ever since . . . well, ever since they got to the mountain, really, but she had refused to even speak after Beast had mentioned her sister. Everyone knew Drifter didn’t like to talk about what happened, and that bringing it up was asking for a world of pain. But Beast was already in a world of pain from his broken ribs—surely it couldn’t get any worse.
With more effort than he thought it would take, Beast picked himself up off the floor and hobbled over to Drifter. He took off his jacket and placed it over the sleeping Zoe like a blanket, then gently led Drifter over to the wall where they slid to the ground. “I can’t believe Tracer’s not back yet.” Beast shivered from the cold.
“I’m gonna kill him,” Drifter muttered, wrapping her arms around herself and staring balefully at the entrance to the cave.
“I know the feeling.” Beast signaled for Pea-Tupato to lie down in front of them. The Bewear’s soft fur provided some warmth, but what they really needed was a fire. Zoe’s Braixen slumped on the ground next to Zoe, exhausted from her futile efforts. Beast looked back at Drifter and took a deep breath. “Believe it or not, I know what it’s like to lose a sibling. Not in the way you did, of course. But Double is not the twin brother I grew up with. The Double I knew was kind and caring, always looking out for me. He was always the more clever of the two of us and knew how to get us out of trouble—and we sure found a lot of trouble in Po Town.”
Drifter continued to stare off into space as she hugged Pea-Tupato’s warm belly. She gave no indication that she was even listening, but she also wasn’t telling Beast to shut up, so he decided to press his luck.
“To be honest, I don’t know what to think after seeing him again this morning. Am I glad he seems to be doing well for himself? Or angry that he seems happier on his own? It’s all very confusing. I guess you can relate.”
Drifter shot him an icy glare with enough force to make Beast flinch. “You just saw your brother this morning. I’ll never see Haeata again.”
“You’re right,” Beast said quickly in an attempt to backpedal. How had he already screwed this up? “My point was, I know you and your sister didn’t always see eye to eye. I’m sorry, I know you’ve had it way worse than me.”
Drifter continued to stare at him, the cold look in her eyes melting into melancholy. “You still have a chance to make your peace with Double,” she said in a soft voice. “That’s something I’ll never get . . .”
Before Beast could respond, Tracer barged into the cave, leaning heavily on a walking stick. Out of breath, he let his hands slide down the stick as he fell to his knees, a wild look in his eyes. “That’s the last time I listen to one of your crazy ideas,” he spat. “Crocjaw and I nearly got our souls cleaved in half!”
“And the rest of us nearly froze to death,” Drifter said impatiently. “Please tell me you actually got the firewood.”
Tracer threw his walking stick at her as his Krookodile meekly offered a second, identical stick. “That’s all we had time to grab, and you’d better be grateful we grabbed anything at all. The freakin’ grim reaper’s haunting this mountain, and I ain’t going out on my own again!”
Wincing from the pain in his ribs, Beast reached out to take the stick from Crocjaw and carefully turned it over in his hands. The wood was polished and smooth, far too much to be a random branch off a tree. Then he saw the wad of cloth tied to one end of the rod. With a cry, Beast threw the rod to the ground. “Tracer, you numbskull! Do you have a death wish? These are pūlo’ulo’u! Kapu sticks! They may not mean anything to a Unovan like you, but here in Alola they’re sacred artifacts!”
“You think I don’t know that?” Tracer shot back. “My gran’s lived in Alola for ninety years and she drilled into my skull the importance of this religious crap! Besides, I thought you didn’t believe in the old traditions.”
A loud crack echoed through the cave as Drifter snapped one of the kapu sticks in half over her leg. “Yesterday’s traditions are today’s firewood. The way I see it, all of us are already cursed in our own ways. What’s a little sacrilege on top of our already crappy lives?” Two more cracks filled the cave as Drifter broke each half of the stick over her leg again, then tossed the quartered pieces to the ground next to where Zoe lay. “You. Braixen. You’d better light this wood if you want your trainer to survive the night.”
Esmeralda wearily got to her feet and tossed a weak Ember from her hand to the pile of wood. The sparks quickly fizzled out. With a frustrated sigh, she looked around for the twig she used to channel her powers. Her eyes fell on the other kapu stick, the one Beast had dropped. With a curious expression on her face, she turned it over in her hands. The stick was almost as long as she was tall, looking more like a staff in her posession. The Braixen twirled the kapu stick around, then pointed the cloth-covered tip at the pile of wood. A large burst of flame erupted out of the staff, igniting the wood and filling the cave with a comfortable heat. Satisfied with the result, Esmeralda whirled and aimed the kapu stick at Beast.
“Whoa! What the hell, girl? Why you trying to fry me?!” Beast backed away from the kapu stick, which curiously showed no signs of damage despite channeling a Flamethrower. Esmeralda merely pressed the cloth tip against Beast’s broken ribs and began uttering a strange chant. The tip of the kapu stick gleamed with a star-like sparkle. Then Esmeralda drew back her staff, a faint smile playing on her lips, and sat back down next to Zoe.
Almost immediately the pain in Beast’s side started to ease. Lifting his shirt, he saw his bruises beginning to fade. “That must have been the move Wish,” Tracer said with a low whistle. “Looks like the pūlo’ulo’u amplified its power enough to heal your ribs. Still think taking them was a bad idea?”
“Like Drifter said, we’re already cursed as it is,” Beast grumbled. “Probably why Po Town’s the only place overrun by Big Jelly.”
“Get some sleep, boys.” Drifter laid down on the hard stone next to the fire, turning her back to Beast and Tracer. “We’ve got a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”
Beast let out a long sigh and leaned against Pea-Tupato, his eyes lingering on Drifter. Was that a trick of the flames, or were her shoulders shaking like she was crying? Either way, he had the feeling she wouldn’t be at ease until they were off this wretched mountain. If he was being honest, Beast wondered if the rest of the island would be any better. He doubted those jelly monsters would be content to stop at Po Town. Was there anywhere truly safe?
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Jan 7, 2023 15:43:28 GMT -8
IC - Ethan Worth (Tox)/Skye Hall (Torch) - Ruins of Conflict, Melemele Island:
Ethan grinned, fists clenched tightly as he pumped an arm into the air. "Yeah! Keep it going, Tox!" He threw a couple of punches forward, shadow-boxing. The energy in the room was rising; with each passing moment he could feel it coursing more strongly through himself, Tox, and the others. "Tapu Koko! Let's! Get! Pumped!"
Tox could feel the energy, too, as he pushed off of the opposite wall and flew by his opponent for another Poison Jab. The air around him was heating up; as Tox thrust his arm forward, it was as though rainbows were beginning to dance on the edge of his vision.
What the Beedrill could not feel, given he was airborne, was the temple beginning to rumble slightly around the group. Skye knelt down by the column next to her, preemptively holding on. This could not possibly be the result of any moves that Tox or Feraligatr were using, which could only mean that something else was causing it. And if that were the case, there was a good chance this quaking would soon get much, much more intense.
IC - Specialty Unit Brigham - VIP Cell Block, The Alamo:
". . . So there I was in the middle of this angry herd of Bidoof with nothing but a lamp and my granny's 1964 regional coin collection when all of a sudden--oh shit." Brigham suddenly straightened up as he finally stopped talking, turning toward the hallway and shifting into a stiff salute. "Executive Ladon, ma'am!"
"At ease, Brigham," Ladon said as she and Amanda Zarth came into view of the cell door. She nodded to James. "Arthur. Hopefully Brigham hasn't been too much of an earful." She was carrying a tablet under her arm, which she held up and began tapping on. A few button presses later, the lights above the door turned green and it slid open. Rather than entering, Ladon stepped aside. "Regardless, you'll be pleased to know that we've officially ruled you out as a suspect in Goldhawk's death. I've already briefed Zarth here on the relevant reasoning, but I am more than happy to go over the specifics with you directly if you'd so like. Suffice it to say your tip regarding Celebi was more than enlightening."
IC - Sonja Baron (Ares/Athena/Neith/Loki/Gaia/Poseidon/Neptune/Atum/Tanith/Beira) - Missing Zero - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island:
The sound of a familiar voice pulled Sonja's attention away from the battle. "Ellen!" She ran forward and pulled her into a tight hug before the two ducked behind some rocks for cover. A stray Thunderbolt hit the stone above them, sending a shower of dust over them. It was difficult to hear over the din of battle, but she nodded as Ellen recounted what had happened. "Glad to hear you guys pulled it off! These guys showed up not too long ago--not that you could tell with how hectic everything's gotten."
“We got what we came here for, we should organize a retreat.” Ellen pointed to the Aether soldiers fighting further down the coast. “But what about them? We can’t just leave Aether to fight these Instances on their own, can we?”
Sonja peered over the rocks. True, these were pretty hellish conditions to leave anyone to deal with. But Operation R.A.L.L.Y. relied on soldiers like these ones from Aether, as well as a number of other Liberty and Rocket Agents in their midst, to buy time for others to find and recruit Legendary Pokémon. It was not ideal, but it was the best shot the world had at ultimately finding a way to defeat Missing Zero.
With a heavy heart, she sighed and pulled back, looking at Ellen with a frown. Sonja opened her comm, beginning to send a message to the others. "I hate to say it, but you're right--we need to go," she said. "Our job isn't to hold the front lines, it's to find Legendary Pokémon. Tapu Fini was our goal here and it's been accomplished, so we need to move on to the next one. The sooner we do that, the sooner they get the best back-up that we can provide."
|
|
|
Post by minun4 on Jan 12, 2023 20:27:14 GMT -8
IC: James Arthur - VIP Cell Block
Brigham’s ramblings weren’t entirely useless. They confirmed a few important things for him. One, the targeting of Ford and his Children was well-known by now. Two, Ladon had felt the need to shake up who was guarding the VIP Cells. Nothing earth-shattering, but not useless. That lasted for about a minute. Everything after that was pointless nonsense that made months of silence seem appealing. First James maintained polite interest. But as time wore on, interest gave way to apathy, and apathy gave way to actively rooting for the Bidoof to tear the narrator limb from limb as if that would retroactively get him to shut up. Why Team Liberty kept hiring people who talked James’s ear off, he would never know.
It was no small relief then when Executive Ladon and Amanda Zarth came into the room. But when Ladon opened the door to his cell, James’s relief turned into a sort of confusion. Team Liberty had held him without trial for so long, he wasn’t entirely sure this wasn’t some elaborate trap.
“Not to worry, his stories were both engaging and fast-paced,” James lied, to break the silence. He put one foot slowly in front of the other as he stepped out of his cell into the hall.
The idea that he was being set free still didn’t seem real, but that was no excuse not to get to work. Ladon’s other statement got some gears turning in James’s head. He didn’t need a reason to not be suspected of a murder he didn’t commit, but he did want to know one thing. “Has another suspect been identified?”
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Feb 1, 2023 14:57:40 GMT -8
IC: Z-Warrior Zoe Llyan/Beast/Tracer/Drifter - Cave, Mount Lanakila “Hey! I think she’s waking up!”
“‘Bout time. For a moment there I thought we’d hafta carry her down the mountain.”
“Hey, hey! Don’t crowd around her. Give her room to breathe.”
The voices further roused Zoe from her half-asleep state. A sweet scent reached her nose, sparking memories of a Kalosian bakery. The hard ground dug into her back, a cold contrast to the warm, crackling fire by her side.
Her eyes fluttered open. A pendant dangled above her, swaying back and forth like a Hypno’s. Only this one was more ornate, and as her eyes followed the chain she found it was not clutched in a furry yellow hand but dangling from a woman’s neck. Strands of dark hair partially obscured her features, but she could feel her warm breath as she let out a sigh of relief. “How you feeling, Z?”
Zoe blinked, still groggy. “Collie . . . ?” she asked in a rasping voice. The effort tickled her throat and threw her into a small fit of coughing. Next thing she knew, a bottle or flask of some sort was pressed to her lips and she took a long sip of musty water.
After a few more coughs to clear her throat, Zoe looked around, feeling more awake now. Immediately Esmeralda pulled her into a warm embrace. Zoe barely noticed the Braixen’s new staff before catching sight of the other people standing around her. “Drifter? Tracer? Beast? Where are we?”
“Mount Lanakila,” Drifter said in a soft voice. Her pendant swayed again as she knelt down to look Zoe in the eyes, evidently searching for some sign of clarity. “You fell into the snow, remember?”
Suddenly it all came back to Zoe. Their attempted journey to Po Town. The battle at the lake. The sudden Teleport to a snowy mountain . . .
“Stitch!” Zoe reached for her Pokéballs. Grabbing one, she pressed the button and sent out the strange blue cloud-like Pokémon she had met at the lake.
The Pokémon looked around, confused for a moment. Then it raised its eyes to Zoe, visibly relaxed, and let out a sleepy “pew!”
Zoe scooped the creature up in her arms. “Oh, Stitch, I’m so glad you’re alright. You were so exhausted earlier.”
“Stitch?” Tracer scoffed. “That’s a Cosmog, not a Stitch.”
“His name is Stitch,” Zoe said defensively.
“Well, he certainly seems to have grown attached to you,” Beast noted, reaching out to hand Zoe a small sandwich. “Here, eat up. Drifter found some berries this morning. Your Braixen helped cook them, and I happened to have a loaf of bread with me. The rest of us already had our share. Enjoy it now; that’s all the bread we got.”
Zoe gratefully accepted the sandwich, realizing for the first time how hungry she was. She hadn’t eaten since Double’s boat. She eagerly bit into the sandwich, and almost spit it out. The bread was so stale it might as well have been cardboard, and the berries, despite their faintly sweet aroma, were excruciatingly bitter.
Tracer burst into laugher at Zoe’s reaction. “Sorry, Z. This ain’t no malasada. Beast’s actually a good cook, he just got inferior ingredients to work with.”
“You’d better still eat it,” Drifter said. “Your body needs the energy and we’ve got a big day ahead of us.”
Pursing her lips, Zoe took another bite. Even knowing what to expect, it was no better than the first. She offered some to her Pokémon. Stitch, Eilonwy, Merida, and Kida each had a similar distaste for the sandwich. Only Esmeralda seemed to tolerate it somewhat.
As Zoe forced down the rest of her breakfast, Drifter knelt next to the Cosmog and forced a smile. “Stitch, right? Listen, buddy. You got us into this mess, you can get us out. One small Teleport and we’ll all be safe. It doesn’t have to be the lake, send us to any sort of civilization and we’ll be forever in your debt.”
Stitch shook his head (his whole body, really) and turned away with a small “hmph!”
“Come on!” Drifter cried. “We’re all in danger here, you stupid little space cloud! Can’t you see that?” When Stitch cowered behind Zoe’s leg, Drifter let out a sigh. “I’m sorry. Z, you’re his trainer now. Maybe you can talk him into helping us.”
“He doesn’t want to,” Zoe said, kneeling down to comfort her new Pokémon. “Or maybe he can’t—I’m not entirely sure. But you’re not going to get anywhere by yelling at him.”
Drifter folded her arms over her chest. “Well if he doesn’t want to help, then we have no choice but to start making our way down the mountain. We’ve only got so much daylight, so we’d better get started.”
OOC: Species: Cosmog (male) Nickname: Stitch Trainer: Zoe Llyan Appearance: His blue cheeks are less pronounced than most Cosmog. Personality: Stitch has a bit of an Impish nature, loving to pull practical jokes on people. His pranks often get him into trouble, at which point he will try to hide or Teleport to safety. Ability: Unaware Specialty: If anything, Stitch seems to specialize in getting out of trouble. Whether it’s his Lillipup eyes conveying a false innocence or his knack for Teleporting out of danger, he always seems to evade the consequences of his actions. Known Moves: Splash, Teleport Number of Battles: 4 (Instances, Lake of the Moone (x4))
|
|
alku
Technician
Posts: 63
|
Post by alku on Feb 2, 2023 14:13:44 GMT -8
IC: Evan Tierra
Evan hadn't gone too far, when he heard an alert on his Pokégear, He checked the message, frowning as he did so. "Retreat, eh?" He said, grinding his teeth. "I don't like it, but we have no choice. The odds aren't in our favor anyway." With that, Evan sent a reply of acknowledgement, and made his way to the others.
|
|
|
Post by Konuju on Feb 3, 2023 15:04:36 GMT -8
IC: Ryan Sanders (Togie/Missy/Garchomp) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island Ryan was still mulling over the strange television Instance’s typing when he received Sonja’s message to retreat. “Looks like TV time’s over,” he said. “Togie, let’s get out of here.”
No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the television screen before him went blank. The robotic figure’s eyes went dark, and the whole Instance suddenly dropped out of the sky.
Ryan stared after the Instance in disbelief. “Was it something I sai-AAAAHHH!”
Not a moment later, Togie dropped out of the sky, too. The Togekiss—and the two trainers—began tumbling out of control, and it was all Ryan and Ray could do to keep from falling off. Missy and Garchomp cried out in surprise, but by the time they started following, Togie had already fallen several hundred feet.
The only move Ryan could think of that would cause both Togie and the Instance to faint and drop out of the sky like that was Perish Song — of course, these Instances also had powers far beyond any known Pokémon moves. But the reason for their sudden plummet was the least of his concerns right now. “Ray!” Ryan yelled over the screeching winds. “Togie’s unresponsive! On a count of three, I need you to grab his right wing and pull up—I’ll do the same with his left wing! One—two—three!”
Ryan pulled as hard as he could, praying the wings would catch the wind. Thankfully, their combined efforts managed to stop their uncontrolled tumble. But by the time they’d leveled out, they had lost too much altitude and were on a collision course for the sharp rocks of Poni Breaker Coast.
“Pull up more!” Ryan cried, already knowing they might be too late. “Hurry!”
IC: Ellen Burks (Symbio/Fiora/Artemis/Maturin) - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island Ellen gave a sharp whistle to call her Pokémon toward her. “Let’s move out, everyone!” she said. “I know it’s hard, but we need to recruit the other Tapus before—“
A blast of energy exploded nearby. Ellen looked up at the source and was surprised to see it came not from an Instance but from Ryan’s Garchomp. Her shock turned to terror when she saw Ryan, Ray, and Togie tumbling through the sky. They managed to pull up, but still looked like they were about to put the “break” in “Poni Breaker Coast.”
“They’re coming in too fast!” Ellen cried. “Symbio, can you stop them?”
The Reuniclus reached out with psychic power. Togie visibly slowed down, but it wasn’t enough. Ellen, I need your help!
No sooner did Ellen receive the mental cry for help than the light of Mega Evolution surrounded Symbio. With the added powers of both Mega Evolution and Ellen’s resolve, Togie slowed down even further.
“Artemis! Fiora! Maturin!” Ellen and Symbio yelled in unison. “Back us up!”
Still holding her flower, Fiora summoned a Fairy Wind updraft to further slow Togie’s fall. When the wind stopped blowing, Artemis leaped up to strike Togie from below, giving them a boost of altitude just enough to sail over the jagged rocks on the coast. As swiftly as he could, Maturin positioned himself beneath Togie, catching him on his back. The turtle of enormous girth grunted from the impact, knees buckling, but managed to stop their fall.
Ryan and Ray tumbled to the ground, rolling to a stop at Sonja and Ellen’s feet. With a groan, Ryan picked himself up and cracked a weary smile. “You called?”
“Good . . .” Ellen and Symbio collapsed with a collective sigh of relief. Mega Evolving again so soon after their battle with Tapu Fini took more out of them than they’d thought. The world started to spin, but they could tell their efforts had succeeded. “You’re both . . . alright . . . .”
|
|
|
Post by Parugi on Feb 6, 2023 21:59:54 GMT -8
IC - Executive Danielle Ladon - Executive Suites, The Alamo:
Ladon sighed as they walked past Brigham, who was still frozen in a salute behind them. "Yes, we have," she said, though waited until they were out of earshot of the guard to continue. "It appears one David Ross paid him a visit before he expired--just beforehand. Not that anyone could have figured that out from the original autopsy report. I've already spoken with Zarth here about the implications, and I'm sure you can surmise them yourself." She shook her head. "Rats keep climbing higher and higher on the sinking ship . . ."
IC - Kyle Eston/Sonja Baron - Missing Zero - Poni Breaker Coast, Poni Island:
Retreating from this fight was not an easy choice to make; Kyle was half-tempted to ignore Sonja's message. It was a testament to how overwhelming Missing Zero's forces could be that this once-peaceful beach had already turned into what amounted to a warzone. The only saving grace of it all was that he had yet to see any dead bodies of either allied people or Pokémon, though he wasn't sure if that was because none had yet fallen or if those that had had been taken away in the chaos.
As he rested behind cover, trying to figure out what to do, a soldier in Team Rocket gear slid down from the rock above, landing heavily in the sand and skittering to rest against the rock next to him. The boy fiddled rapidly with his rifle, working on a jam in the firing mechanism, and barely glanced at Kyle for a brief moment before doing a double-take. "Ah, hey there!" he said, as if this were the most casual meeting in the world. "You're new. No gear though?"
"Uh, no," Kyle said, a little confused. "My friends and I--"
"You aren't frontlines," the boy said. He cocked his head, smiling. "Makes sense; they wouldn't send you out here dressed like that." He shook his gun. "You better get out of here, then; got a job to do elsewhere, right?"
"Yeah, I mean . . ." Kyle looked back in the direction of Tapu Fini's temple. "We just talked Tapu Fini into helping, so . . ."
"Well, that's good!" the other boy said. "Onto the next one, then!"
"Sure, but--" An explosion sounded behind them. "Are you all going to be okay?"
The boy grinned, finally managing to clear the chamber of his rifle. "Don't worry about us. You've got your job, we've got ours." He moved past Kyle. "Get out of here; I've got you covered."
Kyle stepped away from the rock, taking a moment to get a lock on the rest of the group on the hill above. He began to move but then paused, looking back at the soldier. "Hey, what's your name?"
The boy looked back at him, offering a playful grin. "I feel like if I told you that, you'd just feel worse. Get out of here, buddy."
He wasn't wrong. Without further argument, Kyle headed off to meet with the others. At some point he chanced a glance back, but the soldier was gone, disappeared back into the chaos entangling the beachfront.
"Well, welcome back, everyone," Sonja said as the group trickled in, the latest being Kyle. "Hate to be the one to say this, but we need to get onto the next part of our mission. I saw Jenny, Chloe, and Colleen together close by--I think it'd be best if we grabbed them and regrouped back at base, see how the others are doing and determine our next course of action from there." She glanced at Ellen and Symbio. "And maybe rest up a bit, if we need it."
|
|